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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. bulb — for light
  3. shower — rain
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. race — the arms race
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. rock — music
  8. bulb — for light
  9. season — of the year
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. race — humankind
  12. rock — a stone
  13. scale — in music
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. bat — the animal
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. race — a contest
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. scale — size or range
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. season — in sport

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