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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. stem — to come from
  7. cell — a phone
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. shower — to wash
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. cell — in biology
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. shower — rain
  16. wind — moving air
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. wind — moving air

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