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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 ________________ went through the wall.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. shower — to wash
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. field — a subject
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. kick — in football
  9. shower — rain
  10. capital — a city
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. rash — hasty
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. bore — to drill
  16. bore — to tire
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. rash — a series
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. capital — money
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — farmland

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