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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 124 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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. cell — in biology
  4. game — wild animals
  5. ball — a great time
  6. ball — a dance
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. fall — to drop
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. land — ground
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. cell — a phone
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. land — a country
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. fall — to drop
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. can — to be able to
  21. game — a match
  22. fall — the season
  23. can — a tin
  24. can — a tin

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