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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.

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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. chest — a box
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. wake — a trail
  8. shower — to wash
  9. chest — of your body
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. snap — to click
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. root — of a plant
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. root — of a word
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. shower — rain
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. dip — to sink
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. root — the cause
  24. chest — of your body

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