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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 protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. cold — an illness
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. kick — in football
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. fine — high quality
  12. spell — letters
  13. wound — an injury
  14. spell — magic
  15. chair — a leader
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. wound — an injury
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. fine — all right
  21. cold — not warm
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. spell — a short time
  24. coach — a trainer

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