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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tear · cabinet · calf · fall · cap · chest

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. cap — a hat
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — to rip
  7. tear — from crying
  8. chest — of your body
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. fall — the season
  11. chest — a box
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — to drop
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. cap — of ice
  16. chest — of your body
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cabinet — a cupboard

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