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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. ball — a great time
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. squash — to crush
  5. net — after costs
  6. current — electric
  7. net — in sport
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. current — of water
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. squash — the sport
  14. net — for catching
  15. mine — for digging
  16. capital — a city
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. ball — a dance
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. wound — an injury
  23. capital — money
  24. current — happening now

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