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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cue — a signal
  5. cue — a hint
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. game — wild animals
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. cold — not warm
  10. craft — a skill
  11. cue — for pool
  12. craft — boats
  13. can — a tin
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. branch — a division
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. rush — hurry
  18. game — a match
  19. can — to be able to
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. cold — the Cold War

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