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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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. kid — to tease
  3. spring — of water
  4. bulb — for light
  5. mark — a grade
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. squash — to crush
  10. squash — the sport
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. shower — rain
  13. spring — the season
  14. kid — child
  15. spring — a coil
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. pitch — completely
  18. bulb — for light
  19. shower — to wash
  20. mark — a trace
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. bulb — of a plant
  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