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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. tear — to rip
  5. fork — in a road
  6. bass — the fish
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. bass — low music
  11. tear — from crying
  12. prune — to trim
  13. prune — to trim
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. tear — from crying
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. bass — the instrument

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