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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 giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. drill — army training
  3. stock — goods
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. drill — a practice
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. stock — shares
  10. clip — for paper
  11. tube — the underground
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. date — the fruit
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. clip — to cut
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. tube — a container
  21. drill — the tool
  22. clip — a video
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. date — on the calendar

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