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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. mate — a friend
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. root — of a plant
  5. rush — hurry
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. root — of a word
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. mate — to breed
  11. spring — the season
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. spring — of water
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. bat — the animal
  17. spring — a coil
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. root — the cause
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. mate — a partner
  24. bark — to shout

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