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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. file — a document
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. file — a tool
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. present — a gift
  11. branch — a division
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. present — there
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. file — a line of people
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. present — the time now

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