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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. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. wind — moving air
  5. cold — not warm
  6. cell — a phone
  7. cold — an illness
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. file — a document
  10. rock — music
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. rock — a stone
  15. firm — decided
  16. firm — steady
  17. file — a line of people
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. file — a tool
  22. wind — moving air
  23. firm — a company
  24. cell — in biology

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