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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bat · tube · ground · spring · calf · last · sharp · root

  1. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. tube — a container
  5. ground — crushed
  6. last — to go on
  7. tube — the underground
  8. ground — a position
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. spring — of water
  11. spring — the season
  12. root — of a plant
  13. last — finally
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. spring — a coil
  16. bat — the animal
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. last — final
  19. root — of a word
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. root — the cause
  23. ground — the earth
  24. sharp — clever

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