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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. cue — a signal
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. cue — a hint
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. rash — a series
  8. rash — hasty
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. bat — the animal
  11. saw — the tool
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. cue — for pool
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. rush — hurry
  18. tube — a container
  19. tube — the underground
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. dip — to sink
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. saw — the tool

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