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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. season — in sport
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. game — a match
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. craft — a skill
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. season — of the year
  13. dip — to sink
  14. row — a line
  15. row — to paddle
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. spell — a short time
  20. spell — magic
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. craft — boats
  23. game — wild animals
  24. dip — to dunk

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