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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. drill — army training
  3. march — music
  4. lean — to bend
  5. present — there
  6. shower — to wash
  7. march — the month
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. drill — a practice
  10. present — the time now
  11. lean — thin
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. fork — in a road
  15. shower — rain
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. vault — a safe
  21. drill — the tool
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. march — the month
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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