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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. mate — a friend
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. season — of the year
  8. squash — to crush
  9. squash — the sport
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. perch — the fish
  12. mate — to breed
  13. wind — moving air
  14. row — to paddle
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. kid — to tease
  20. season — in sport
  21. mate — a partner
  22. kid — child
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. perch — for a bird

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