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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. cue — a signal
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. bore — to tire
  6. saw — the tool
  7. cell — a phone
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. spring — a coil
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. cue — a hint
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. bore — to drill
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. saw — the tool
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. cell — in biology
  23. spring — the season
  24. cue — for pool

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