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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. pitch — completely
  6. dip — to sink
  7. swing — music
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. tear — from crying
  11. tear — to rip
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. mine — for digging
  14. tear — from crying
  15. swing — in golf
  16. shower — rain
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. swing — to play on
  20. shower — to wash
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. chair — a leader
  24. pitch — a sports field

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com