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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. mate — a partner
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. tear — to rip
  8. spring — the season
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. tear — from crying
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. spring — a coil
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. tear — from crying
  18. mate — to breed
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. spring — of water
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. pitcher — a jug

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