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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. hand — in cards
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. track — a song
  5. cue — for pool
  6. rock — music
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. land — to come down
  9. rock — a stone
  10. cue — a signal
  11. track — to keep track
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. cue — a hint
  14. land — ground
  15. fine — high quality
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. fine — all right
  19. land — a country
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. wind — moving air
  22. hand — help
  23. track — a path
  24. wind — moving air

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