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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. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  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. calf — a young animal
  2. root — of a plant
  3. wound — an injury
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. root — of a word
  6. root — the cause
  7. file — a tool
  8. can — a tin
  9. cold — not warm
  10. firm — steady
  11. saw — the tool
  12. wound — an injury
  13. can — to be able to
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. firm — decided
  16. firm — a company
  17. can — a tin
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. file — a document
  20. file — a line of people
  21. cold — an illness
  22. saw — the tool
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  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