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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. mate — a friend
  4. cap — of ice
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. shower — to wash
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. mate — a partner
  9. rush — hurry
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. saw — the tool
  12. row — to paddle
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. content — happy
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. mate — to breed
  17. cap — a lid
  18. row — a line
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. saw — the tool
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. content — the amount
  24. cap — a hat

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