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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 · root · bear · chest · cold · lean · board · lie

  1. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. cold — not warm
  4. lean — thin
  5. lie — to recline
  6. board — a committee
  7. chest — a box
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. root — of a word
  11. root — the cause
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. root — of a plant
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. bear — the animal
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. chest — of your body
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. chest — of your body
  20. cold — an illness
  21. bear — the animal
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. lean — to bend

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