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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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Word bank
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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: court · staff · calf · last · pit · cap · sharp · deal

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. cap — a hat
  4. staff — employees
  5. pit — a hole
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. cap — a lid
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. last — final
  10. court — of a king
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. last — to go on
  13. sharp — clever
  14. court — for sport
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. staff — a stick
  18. deal — to handle
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. cap — of ice
  21. pit — in a race
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. staff — employees
  24. last — finally

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