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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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. rush — hurry
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. cold — not warm
  5. chest — of your body
  6. can — a tin
  7. board — to get on
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. cold — an illness
  12. face — part of the head
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. can — a tin
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. board — a committee
  17. face — to point toward
  18. chest — of your body
  19. face — to confront
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. can — to be able to
  23. branch — a division
  24. chest — a box

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