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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. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. root — of a word
  3. fall — the season
  4. ground — crushed
  5. drill — a practice
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. root — the cause
  8. shower — to wash
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. drill — the tool
  12. shower — rain
  13. root — of a plant
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fall — to drop
  16. drill — army training
  17. band — a ring
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. ground — a position
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. band — a music group
  23. ground — the earth
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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