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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. cold — not warm
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. shower — rain
  9. bass — the fish
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. current — electric
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. fall — the season
  14. current — of water
  15. fall — to drop
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. shower — to wash
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. fall — to drop
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. current — happening now
  24. bass — low music

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