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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. net — in sport
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. net — after costs
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. shower — to wash
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. content — happy
  9. tear — to rip
  10. last — finally
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — from crying
  14. shower — rain
  15. content — the amount
  16. last — final
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. net — for catching
  20. last — to go on
  21. dip — to sink
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. dip — a sauce

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