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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. pound — a weight
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. shower — rain
  5. land — a country
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. file — a tool
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. court — of law
  10. court — for sport
  11. court — of a king
  12. land — ground
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. file — a line of people
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. land — to come down
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. file — a document
  21. shower — to wash
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. season — of the year

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