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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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Word bank
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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: shower · calf · board · roll · file · spell · mug · bulb

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. file — a document
  3. spell — letters
  4. board — to get on
  5. mug — a face
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. file — a line of people
  8. spell — a short time
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. shower — to wash
  11. board — a committee
  12. roll — a list
  13. file — a tool
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. bulb — for light
  17. bulb — for light
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. mug — to rob
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. shower — rain
  23. spell — magic
  24. roll — a cake

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