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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. fall — the season
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. fall — to drop
  11. bat — the animal
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. fall — to drop
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. lie — to recline
  24. lie — an untruth

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