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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. cell — in biology
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. march — the month
  10. track — a song
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. tear — from crying
  13. spring — a coil
  14. spring — of water
  15. march — the month
  16. track — a path
  17. march — music
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. track — to keep track
  21. cell — a phone
  22. tear — to rip
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. tear — from crying

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