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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 116 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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. stand — to bear
  4. pop — to visit
  5. pop — soda
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. sharp — clever
  10. tube — the underground
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. tube — a container
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. hand — help
  16. pop — music
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. bat — the animal
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. deal — to handle
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. hand — in cards
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. bat — in an idiom

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