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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. mug — to rob
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. pop — soda
  8. cell — in biology
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. capital — a city
  11. pop — music
  12. root — the cause
  13. root — of a word
  14. wound — an injury
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. wake — a trail
  17. pop — to visit
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. mug — a cup
  20. capital — money
  21. wound — an injury
  22. root — of a plant
  23. mug — a face
  24. cell — a phone

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