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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 did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. perch — the fish
  3. spring — the season
  4. mate — a partner
  5. mate — to breed
  6. current — happening now
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. spring — a coil
  9. mate — a friend
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. spell — magic
  12. land — a country
  13. spell — letters
  14. land — ground
  15. current — electric
  16. bass — the fish
  17. spring — of water
  18. land — to come down
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. spell — a short time
  22. current — of water
  23. bass — low music
  24. calf — of the leg

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