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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'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. pop — music
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. pop — soda
  7. firm — decided
  8. cell — in biology
  9. firm — a company
  10. race — the arms race
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a city
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. pop — to visit
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. hand — help
  17. cell — a phone
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. race — humankind
  22. race — a contest
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. hand — in cards

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