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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 · rest · season · cold · kid · object · tear · perch

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. kid — to tease
  6. cold — an illness
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. season — of the year
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. season — in sport
  11. object — an aim
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. tear — to rip
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. rest — what's left
  16. rest — a break
  17. tear — from crying
  18. rest — what's left
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. perch — the fish
  21. object — a thing
  22. object — to protest
  23. tear — from crying
  24. kid — child

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