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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. shower — to wash
  3. fork — in a road
  4. game — a match
  5. spell — magic
  6. foot — a measure
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. fall — the season
  9. fall — to drop
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. game — wild animals
  12. mate — a friend
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. spell — a short time
  18. shower — rain
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. mate — a partner
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. mate — to breed
  24. fall — to drop

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