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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. cap — a hat
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. object — to protest
  5. cap — a lid
  6. last — to go on
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. last — final
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. mug — a face
  11. prune — to trim
  12. prune — to trim
  13. swing — music
  14. object — a thing
  15. last — finally
  16. swing — in golf
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. mug — to rob
  19. cap — of ice
  20. court — of law
  21. object — an aim
  22. court — for sport
  23. court — of a king
  24. mug — a cup

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