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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  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. calf — of the leg
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. shower — rain
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. drill — a practice
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. march — the month
  9. drill — the tool
  10. drill — army training
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. pound — a weight
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. march — the month
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. wake — a trail
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. shower — to wash
  21. march — music
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  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