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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 120 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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. tube — a container
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. rash — a series
  8. rash — hasty
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. wound — an injury
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. shower — rain
  13. bore — to drill
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. tube — the underground
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. field — a subject
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. wound — an injury
  22. field — for sport
  23. shower — to wash
  24. bore — to tire

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