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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. game — a match
  6. land — a country
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. bore — to drill
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. game — wild animals
  12. pound — a weight
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. land — to come down
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. land — ground
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. cell — in biology
  20. rash — a series
  21. bore — to tire
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. cell — a phone
  24. rash — hasty

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