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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: calf · wound · chair · cue · face · net · sharp · kid

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. cue — for pool
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. wound — an injury
  7. cue — a hint
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. face — to confront
  10. net — after costs
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. net — for catching
  13. sharp — clever
  14. kid — child
  15. chair — a leader
  16. face — part of the head
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. kid — to tease
  20. cue — a signal
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. net — in sport
  23. wound — an injury
  24. sharp — with an edge

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