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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. spring — of water
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. row — to paddle
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. spring — a coil
  8. row — a line
  9. fork — in a road
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. rock — a stone
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. bore — to drill
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. bore — to tire
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. wake — a trail
  23. spring — the season
  24. rock — music

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