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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. toast — bread
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. march — the month
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. pit — in a race
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. shower — rain
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. pit — a hole
  17. march — the month
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. march — music
  22. deal — to handle
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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