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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. wound — an injury
  4. band — a music group
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. band — a ring
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. march — the month
  13. shower — rain
  14. perch — the fish
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. craft — a skill
  17. shower — to wash
  18. march — the month
  19. fork — in a road
  20. craft — boats
  21. wound — an injury
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. march — music
  24. calf — of the leg

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