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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. drill — the tool
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. capital — money
  5. pit — in a race
  6. wound — an injury
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. wind — moving air
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. wound — an injury
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. wind — moving air
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. drill — a practice
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. drill — army training
  21. capital — a city
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. trunk — of a tree

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