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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 teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. ground — a position
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. spring — of water
  11. spring — a coil
  12. ground — the earth
  13. present — there
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. spring — the season
  16. stand — to bear
  17. present — the time now
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. roll — a cake
  20. date — the fruit
  21. ground — crushed
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. present — a gift

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