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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: leaves · bark · race · calf · date · shower · plane · kid

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. race — the arms race
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. kid — child
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. kid — to tease
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. race — humankind
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. race — a contest
  18. plane — a tool
  19. date — the fruit
  20. bark — to shout
  21. shower — to wash
  22. shower — rain
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. bark — of a tree

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