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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. tube — a container
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. land — to come down
  5. saw — the tool
  6. land — ground
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. land — a country
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. wind — moving air
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. tube — the underground
  14. club — for golf
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. club — for dancing
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bulb — for light
  21. saw — the tool
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. club — a group
  24. bulb — for light

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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