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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. shower — rain
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. pit — in a race
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. spell — a short time
  9. drill — the tool
  10. root — of a word
  11. spell — magic
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. shower — to wash
  14. drill — a practice
  15. sharp — clever
  16. root — the cause
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. season — in sport
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. drill — army training
  21. root — of a plant
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. pit — a hole
  24. season — of the year

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