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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. shower — rain
  3. season — in sport
  4. ground — the earth
  5. wind — moving air
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. track — a song
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. track — a path
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. chair — a leader
  13. ground — crushed
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. season — of the year
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. shower — to wash
  18. track — to keep track
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. ground — a position
  24. wind — moving air

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