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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. toast — bread
  3. object — to protest
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. bore — to drill
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. pitch — completely
  8. mine — for digging
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. plane — a tool
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. capital — a city
  17. capital — money
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. bore — to tire
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. object — a thing
  23. object — an aim
  24. mine — belonging to me

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