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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. cold — an illness
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. cap — of ice
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. shower — to wash
  10. cap — a hat
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. snap — to click
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. shower — rain
  17. current — electric
  18. cold — not warm
  19. cap — a lid
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. current — happening now
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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