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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. capital — a city
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. row — a line
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. field — for sport
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. row — to paddle
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. field — farmland
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. field — a subject
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. capital — money
  24. row — a quarrel

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