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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. tube — the underground
  7. last — to go on
  8. deal — to handle
  9. tear — from crying
  10. last — final
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. tear — from crying
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. tear — to rip
  16. tube — a container
  17. snap — to click
  18. last — finally
  19. sharp — clever
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. tube — in a tire

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