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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cue — a hint
  3. last — to go on
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. race — a contest
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. lie — to recline
  12. wax — to grow
  13. cue — a signal
  14. last — final
  15. cue — for pool
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. race — humankind
  18. shower — to wash
  19. shower — rain
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. race — the arms race
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. cold — an illness
  24. last — finally

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