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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 surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. tube — the underground
  4. squash — the sport
  5. club — for dancing
  6. club — for golf
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. club — a group
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. kid — to tease
  11. squash — to crush
  12. file — a tool
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. kid — child
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. tube — a container
  22. file — a line of people
  23. file — a document
  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