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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. drill — army training
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. tear — from crying
  9. saw — the tool
  10. drill — the tool
  11. rash — a series
  12. tear — from crying
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. spring — of water
  15. spring — a coil
  16. saw — the tool
  17. spring — the season
  18. drill — a practice
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. tear — to rip
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. leaves — of a tree

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