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

Word bank: tear · calf · chair · cap · mine · snap · safe · march

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. snap — to click
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. tear — to rip
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. mine — for digging
  10. cap — a lid
  11. march — the month
  12. march — music
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. tear — from crying
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. tear — from crying
  18. cap — a hat
  19. march — the month
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. chair — a leader
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. safe — out of danger

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