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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. tube — a container
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. cold — not warm
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. pit — in a race
  7. rest — a break
  8. pit — a hole
  9. rest — what's left
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. cold — an illness
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. rest — what's left
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. chair — a leader
  19. pitch — completely
  20. tube — the underground
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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