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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. bear — the animal
  4. mate — a friend
  5. mate — to breed
  6. march — music
  7. shower — to wash
  8. mate — a partner
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. bear — the animal
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. shower — rain
  13. wind — moving air
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. march — the month
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. march — the month
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. nail — on a finger

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