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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 little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. spring — the season
  5. bore — to tire
  6. field — farmland
  7. field — for sport
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. game — a match
  10. game — wild animals
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. bore — to drill
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. spring — of water
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. field — a subject
  20. bear — the animal
  21. spring — a coil
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. calf — of the leg

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