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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 giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. lean — to bend
  6. row — a line
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. scale — in music
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. stock — goods
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. deal — to handle
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. lean — thin
  18. stock — shares
  19. scale — size or range
  20. bat — the animal
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. row — to paddle
  24. pound — a weight

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