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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 116 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: spell · rule · key · file · rest · straw · calf · pound

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. rule — a law
  6. rest — what's left
  7. key — the most important part
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. spell — letters
  10. rest — what's left
  11. file — a tool
  12. spell — magic
  13. file — a line of people
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. key — for a lock
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. file — a document
  19. pound — a weight
  20. rest — a break
  21. key — in music
  22. spell — a short time
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. rule — government

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