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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. drill — army training
  3. object — to protest
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. drill — a practice
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. stock — goods
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. season — in sport
  13. cold — an illness
  14. spell — magic
  15. object — a thing
  16. season — of the year
  17. drill — the tool
  18. spell — letters
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. spell — a short time
  21. stock — shares
  22. object — an aim
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. calf — a young animal

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