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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. pop — to visit
  3. prune — to trim
  4. pop — soda
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. capital — money
  7. prune — to trim
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. pop — music
  12. net — in sport
  13. scale — in music
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. net — for catching
  17. net — after costs
  18. capital — a city
  19. scale — size or range
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. prune — the fruit

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