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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: straw · leaves · coach · sharp · calf · rule · file · snap

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. 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. sharp — with an edge
  2. file — a line of people
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. rule — a law
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. sharp — clever
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. file — a tool
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. rule — government
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. snap — to click
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. file — a document
  24. 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