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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. chest — a box
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. chest — of your body
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. shower — to wash
  12. club — for golf
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. game — a match
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. game — wild animals
  17. chest — of your body
  18. club — a group
  19. club — for dancing
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. board — a committee
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. board — to get on
  24. calf — a young animal

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