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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. row — a line
  3. bass — the fish
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. bass — low music
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. tube — the underground
  15. row — to paddle
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. bore — to tire
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. bore — to drill
  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