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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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. degree — from a university
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. fork — in a road
  7. shower — rain
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. degree — an amount
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. prune — to trim
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. drill — the tool
  15. shower — to wash
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. wax — to grow
  18. band — a music group
  19. drill — a practice
  20. band — a ring
  21. prune — to trim
  22. drill — army training
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. degree — temperature

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