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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. shower — to wash
  3. spell — letters
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. rush — hurry
  6. shower — rain
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. spell — a short time
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. kid — child
  13. spell — magic
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. kid — to tease
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. rush — a thrill

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