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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. bat — the animal
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. wake — a trail
  6. tear — to rip
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. root — the cause
  10. tear — from crying
  11. shower — to wash
  12. root — of a word
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. sharp — clever
  16. tear — from crying
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. root — of a plant
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. shower — rain
  24. cabinet — ministers

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