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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: arm · straw · last · craft · spring · chest · rule · calf

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. chest — a box
  3. spring — a coil
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. chest — of your body
  9. last — to go on
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. rule — a law
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. chest — of your body
  14. spring — of water
  15. rule — government
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. craft — a skill
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. spring — the season
  20. craft — boats
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. last — finally
  24. last — final

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