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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. rest — a break
  3. degree — an amount
  4. prune — to trim
  5. shower — rain
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. snap — to click
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. shower — to wash
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. lie — to recline
  13. degree — temperature
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. rest — what's left
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. drill — army training
  20. drill — a practice
  21. rest — what's left
  22. prune — to trim
  23. drill — the tool
  24. degree — from a university

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