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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: dip · last · shower · bore · snap · pound · date · calf

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. shower — to wash
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. dip — to sink
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. pound — a weight
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. last — final
  11. last — finally
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. bore — to drill
  14. bore — to tire
  15. date — the fruit
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. snap — to click
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. shower — rain
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. last — to go on

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