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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 116 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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. game — a match
  5. mark — a grade
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. bore — to tire
  9. mark — a trace
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. ground — the earth
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. ground — crushed
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. ground — a position
  21. dip — to sink
  22. wake — a trail
  23. bore — to drill
  24. game — wild animals

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