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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 116 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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. ball — a dance
  4. race — humankind
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. kid — child
  9. ball — a great time
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. tear — from crying
  14. race — the arms race
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. tear — from crying
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. kid — to tease
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. race — a contest
  22. tear — to rip
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. racket — for tennis

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