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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. capital — a city
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. drill — army training
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. file — a tool
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. file — a document
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. spell — magic
  13. drill — a practice
  14. spell — letters
  15. staff — employees
  16. drill — the tool
  17. spell — a short time
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. capital — money
  20. file — a line of people
  21. staff — a stick
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. staff — employees

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