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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 120 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 did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. bass — low music
  4. drill — the tool
  5. perch — the fish
  6. tube — the underground
  7. degree — from a university
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. degree — an amount
  13. degree — temperature
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. drill — army training
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. drill — a practice
  21. snap — to click
  22. tube — a container
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. bass — the fish

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