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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 120 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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. shower — to wash
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. cue — for pool
  6. prune — to trim
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. bat — the animal
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. cue — a hint
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. degree — temperature
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. shower — rain
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. prune — to trim
  19. cue — a signal
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. degree — an amount
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. degree — from a university
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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