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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. field — a subject
  7. prune — to trim
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. club — for golf
  11. field — for sport
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. club — a group
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. prune — to trim
  17. field — farmland
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. wind — moving air
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. bat — the animal
  24. wind — to turn a key

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