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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. date — the fruit
  5. march — the month
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. bore — to drill
  10. march — the month
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. fall — the season
  13. ground — crushed
  14. march — music
  15. fall — to drop
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. ground — the earth
  22. ground — a position
  23. fall — to drop
  24. bore — to tire

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