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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 120 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: arm · cell · fine · cold · calf · plane · bear · wound

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. fine — all right
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. cell — in biology
  5. wound — an injury
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. bear — the animal
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. cold — an illness
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. wound — an injury
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. bear — the animal
  19. plane — a tool
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. fine — high quality
  22. cold — not warm
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. cell — a phone

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