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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. can — a tin
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. file — a tool
  6. net — after costs
  7. kid — to tease
  8. net — for catching
  9. wind — moving air
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. kid — child
  13. file — a document
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. can — to be able to
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. net — in sport
  20. file — a line of people
  21. can — a tin
  22. pound — a weight
  23. wind — moving air
  24. patient — a sick person

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