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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: bore · kid · chest · hide · calf · wave · snap · pitcher

  1. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. kid — child
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. chest — of your body
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bore — to drill
  14. bore — to tire
  15. chest — a box
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. kid — to tease
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. snap — to click
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. calf — of the leg

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