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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. spring — a coil
  4. bore — to tire
  5. bore — to drill
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. scale — in music
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. prune — to trim
  11. spring — of water
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. prune — to trim
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. scale — size or range
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. fork — in a road
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. bore — gave birth

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