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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. chest — of your body
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. chest — of your body
  7. chest — a box
  8. bulb — for light
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. field — farmland
  13. spell — letters
  14. bulb — for light
  15. band — a music group
  16. spell — a short time
  17. band — a ring
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. field — for sport
  20. spell — magic
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. field — a subject
  23. deal — to handle
  24. deal — a big deal

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