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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. ball — a great time
  5. tube — a container
  6. tear — from crying
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. tear — to rip
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. tube — the underground
  14. dip — to sink
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. roll — a cake
  18. tear — from crying
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. roll — a list
  21. mine — for digging
  22. ball — a dance
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. tube — in a 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