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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: field · bore · calf · stand · shower · degree · leaves · coach

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. shower — rain
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. stand — to bear
  9. degree — an amount
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. field — a subject
  12. bore — to drill
  13. bore — to tire
  14. degree — temperature
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. field — for sport
  19. shower — to wash
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. degree — from a university
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  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