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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: hand · calf · key · scale · spring · kid · cold · jam

  1. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. spring — of water
  5. hand — help
  6. kid — child
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. scale — size or range
  10. hand — in cards
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. scale — in music
  13. key — for a lock
  14. key — the most important part
  15. cold — not warm
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. spring — a coil
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. cold — an illness
  21. spring — the season
  22. key — in music
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. kid — to tease

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