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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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. face — to point toward
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. capital — a city
  10. last — to go on
  11. face — to confront
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. last — final
  15. last — finally
  16. face — part of the head
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. vault — a safe
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. capital — money

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