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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. sharp — clever
  3. bear — the animal
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. snap — to click
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. court — of law
  12. court — of a king
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. bear — the animal
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. shower — rain
  18. court — for sport
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. shower — to wash

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