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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. ball — a dance
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. tear — to rip
  5. staff — employees
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. rash — a series
  8. rash — hasty
  9. ground — the earth
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. staff — a stick
  13. ground — crushed
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. tear — from crying
  19. ground — a position
  20. ball — a great time
  21. tear — from crying
  22. staff — employees
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. bowl — to roll

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