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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. field — farmland
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. object — a thing
  8. field — for sport
  9. object — to protest
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. bore — to drill
  12. spring — of water
  13. bore — to tire
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. wax — to grow
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. spring — the season
  19. spring — a coil
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. field — a subject
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. object — an aim

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