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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: cold · arm · calf · band · fork · can · rash · plane

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. can — to be able to
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. can — a tin
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. cold — not warm
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. cold — an illness
  11. can — a tin
  12. rash — a series
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. plane — a tool
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. band — a music group
  18. rash — hasty
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. fork — in a road
  21. band — a ring
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. arm — part of the body

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