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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 120 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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. staff — employees
  3. mug — a face
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. cell — in biology
  7. staff — a stick
  8. root — of a word
  9. pound — a weight
  10. mug — a cup
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. root — the cause
  13. tear — from crying
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. tear — from crying
  16. root — of a plant
  17. mug — to rob
  18. tear — to rip
  19. staff — employees
  20. perch — the fish
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. cell — a phone

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