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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: cap · mouse · wake · calf · march · hide · tear · staff

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. march — the month
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. tear — from crying
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. staff — employees
  13. march — music
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. staff — a stick
  16. cap — of ice
  17. cap — a hat
  18. tear — from crying
  19. wake — a trail
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. cap — a lid
  22. tear — to rip
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. march — the month

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