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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: calf · last · stick · chest · wound · game · race · date

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. race — a contest
  3. date — the fruit
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. chest — a box
  7. race — the arms race
  8. wound — an injury
  9. chest — of your body
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. last — to go on
  13. race — humankind
  14. game — a match
  15. wound — an injury
  16. game — wild animals
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. last — finally
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. chest — of your body
  24. last — final

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