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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: content · last · hide · race · calf · board · club · hand

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. race — humankind
  3. race — a contest
  4. content — happy
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. last — finally
  7. hand — help
  8. board — a committee
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. content — the amount
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. race — the arms race
  13. last — to go on
  14. board — to get on
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. club — for dancing
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. last — final
  19. club — for golf
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. club — a group
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. hand — in cards
  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