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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. can — a tin
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. snap — to click
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. can — a tin
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. shower — rain
  16. game — wild animals
  17. shower — to wash
  18. game — a match

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