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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 120 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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. march — music
  3. spell — magic
  4. root — of a plant
  5. mug — a face
  6. swing — music
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. root — of a word
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. bat — the animal
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. march — the month
  13. spell — a short time
  14. march — the month
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. spell — letters
  17. mug — a cup
  18. field — farmland
  19. field — for sport
  20. field — a subject
  21. swing — to play on
  22. swing — in golf
  23. root — the cause
  24. mug — to rob

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