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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. march — the month
  7. pop — to visit
  8. march — music
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. cold — not warm
  11. bore — to tire
  12. band — a music group
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. cold — an illness
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. pop — soda
  17. march — the month
  18. pop — music
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. bore — to drill
  22. band — a ring
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. bore — gave birth

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