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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 124 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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. bound — tied together
  4. bound — obliged
  5. bound — certain
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. swing — to play on
  11. shower — to wash
  12. date — the fruit
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. swing — in golf
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. lean — thin
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. shower — rain
  22. swing — music
  23. lean — to bend
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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