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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: calf · rule · snap · chest · cell · hand

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. snap — to click
  4. chest — of your body
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. cell — in biology
  10. rule — government
  11. chest — of your body
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. hand — help
  14. rule — a law
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. chest — a box
  17. cell — a phone
  18. calf — a young animal

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