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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mate · bear · court · calf · leaves · cold · game · nail

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. court — for sport
  4. mate — a partner
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. game — a match
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. bear — the animal
  11. mate — to breed
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. court — of law
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. cold — not warm
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. bear — the animal
  19. court — of a king
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. cold — an illness
  23. game — wild animals
  24. nail — for a hammer

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