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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. bear — the animal
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. prune — to trim
  9. race — humankind
  10. prune — to trim
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. bear — the animal
  13. last — final
  14. race — the arms race
  15. shower — to wash
  16. shower — rain
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. spring — of water
  19. last — finally
  20. spring — a coil
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. spring — the season
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. last — to go on

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