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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 116 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 protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. prune — to trim
  7. pop — music
  8. court — for sport
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. court — of law
  11. band — a music group
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. pop — to visit
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. pop — soda
  18. prune — to trim
  19. court — of a king
  20. band — a ring
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. bat — the animal
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. mouse — the animal

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