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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. scale — size or range
  3. cue — a hint
  4. land — a country
  5. last — final
  6. present — a gift
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. toast — bread
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. last — to go on
  13. present — the time now
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. scale — in music
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. cue — for pool
  18. cue — a signal
  19. land — to come down
  20. land — ground
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. last — finally
  24. scale — for weighing

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