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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. shower — to wash
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. bore — to tire
  6. game — wild animals
  7. last — finally
  8. game — a match
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. court — of a king
  11. club — for golf
  12. club — for dancing
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. last — final
  16. last — to go on
  17. lean — thin
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. court — of law
  20. lean — to bend
  21. shower — rain
  22. club — a group
  23. court — for sport
  24. bore — to drill

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