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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: wind · nail · bound · lean · file · kid · tear · calf

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. tear — from crying
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. bound — obliged
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. kid — to tease
  9. bound — tied together
  10. file — a tool
  11. file — a line of people
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. wind — moving air
  14. tear — from crying
  15. file — a document
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. tear — to rip
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. bound — certain
  21. lean — to bend
  22. lean — thin
  23. kid — child
  24. nail — for a hammer

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