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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bore — to tire
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. rash — a series
  10. bore — to drill
  11. cold — not warm
  12. present — there
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. chest — a box
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. present — the time now
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. cold — an illness
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. rash — hasty
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. present — a gift

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