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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: pound · key · calf · mine · hide · chest · tube · net

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. chest — of your body
  6. mine — for digging
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. key — for a lock
  10. tube — the underground
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. net — in sport
  13. key — the most important part
  14. tube — a container
  15. net — for catching
  16. pound — a weight
  17. chest — of your body
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. net — after costs
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. chest — a box
  23. key — in music
  24. tube — in a tire

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