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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. wound — an injury
  4. tear — from crying
  5. club — for golf
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. kid — to tease
  8. deal — to handle
  9. club — a group
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. tube — a container
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. tear — to rip
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. wound — an injury
  22. kid — child
  23. tear — from crying
  24. tube — the underground

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