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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 protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. bound — tied together
  3. mug — to rob
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. field — for sport
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. kid — to tease
  8. squash — to crush
  9. bound — obliged
  10. cell — in biology
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. field — farmland
  14. kid — child
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. mug — a face
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. cell — a phone
  19. mug — a cup
  20. squash — the sport
  21. bound — certain
  22. field — a subject
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cell — in a prison

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