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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: bark · shower · craft · pop · cap · calf · lie · chest

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. craft — boats
  5. pop — to visit
  6. lie — to recline
  7. cap — a hat
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. pop — soda
  12. chest — of your body
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. chest — of your body
  16. cap — a lid
  17. chest — a box
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. pop — music
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. shower — to wash
  22. bark — to shout
  23. shower — rain
  24. craft — a skill

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