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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 120 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 your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. hand — help
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. mate — a partner
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. content — happy
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. mate — to breed
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. ball — a dance
  17. content — the amount
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. ball — a great time
  20. hand — in cards
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. mate — a friend
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. bowl — a football final

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