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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. chest — a box
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. pit — in a race
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — of your body
  11. race — the arms race
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. scale — size or range
  14. snap — to click
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. race — humankind
  17. pit — a hole
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. game — wild animals
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. game — a match
  22. scale — in music
  23. race — a contest
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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