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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 band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. key — for a lock
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. rest — what's left
  8. key — in music
  9. cell — a phone
  10. squash — to crush
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. key — the most important part
  14. rest — what's left
  15. march — the month
  16. rest — a break
  17. rash — a series
  18. march — the month
  19. squash — the sport
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. cell — in biology
  23. rash — hasty
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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