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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. march — the month
  3. cell — a phone
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. cell — in biology
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. march — music
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. march — the month
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. kid — to tease
  16. spring — the season
  17. foot — a measure
  18. spring — a coil
  19. spring — of water
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. plane — a tool
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. calf — of the leg

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