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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 116 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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. mug — a face
  3. root — the cause
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. mug — to rob
  6. row — to paddle
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. race — the arms race
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. row — a line
  11. sharp — clever
  12. race — a contest
  13. race — humankind
  14. face — to point toward
  15. root — of a plant
  16. root — of a word
  17. face — to confront
  18. mug — a cup
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. face — part of the head
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. pass — a permit
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. calf — a young animal

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