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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 116 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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. stock — goods
  5. fork — in a road
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. tear — from crying
  10. stock — shares
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. clip — a video
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. shower — to wash
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying
  19. clip — for paper
  20. sharp — clever
  21. clip — to cut
  22. pound — a weight
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. pound — to hit hard

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