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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. lie — to recline
  4. cold — an illness
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. club — for golf
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. net — for catching
  11. club — a group
  12. cold — not warm
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. net — after costs
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. lean — to bend
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. lean — thin
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. club — for dancing
  24. fan — a supporter

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