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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  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. mine — for digging
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. race — a contest
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. cap — a lid
  6. race — humankind
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. stock — goods
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. cap — a hat
  14. race — the arms race
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cap — of ice
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. stock — shares
  23. date — the fruit
  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