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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. shower — rain
  4. row — a line
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. lean — thin
  7. swing — in golf
  8. mug — a cup
  9. row — to paddle
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. lean — to bend
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. court — of law
  14. mug — a face
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. mug — to rob
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. swing — music
  20. court — for sport
  21. swing — to play on
  22. court — of a king
  23. shower — to wash
  24. calf — a young animal

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