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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: cabinet · deal · calf · sharp · court · last · stand · hand

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. deal — to handle
  8. last — to go on
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. sharp — clever
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. last — final
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. court — of a king
  15. court — for sport
  16. last — finally
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. hand — in cards
  20. stand — to bear
  21. hand — help
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. court — of law
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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