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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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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: snap · fall · saw · sharp · row · calf · hide · capital

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — the season
  5. saw — the tool
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. fall — to drop
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. sharp — clever
  11. row — a line
  12. saw — the tool
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. snap — to click
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. capital — a city
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. row — to paddle
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. capital — money

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