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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  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. kid — child
  2. pitch — completely
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. band — a music group
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. kid — to tease
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. spring — of water
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. bark — to shout
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. band — a ring
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. spring — the season
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. spring — a coil
  23. bark — of a tree
  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