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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. bore — to drill
  10. file — a document
  11. bore — to tire
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. file — a tool
  14. spring — of water
  15. land — a country
  16. land — to come down
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. wound — an injury
  20. chair — a leader
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. file — a line of people
  23. land — ground
  24. spring — a coil

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