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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 · staff · stick · stand · snap · wave · sharp · cold

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. sharp — clever
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. snap — to click
  11. cold — an illness
  12. staff — employees
  13. staff — a stick
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. staff — employees
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. cold — not warm
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. calf — a young animal

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