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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. mate — a partner
  3. drill — the tool
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. spell — a short time
  8. root — the cause
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. spell — letters
  14. chair — a leader
  15. kid — child
  16. root — of a word
  17. mate — to breed
  18. root — of a plant
  19. drill — army training
  20. spell — magic
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. drill — a practice
  23. mate — a friend
  24. calf — a young 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