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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 120 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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wake — a trail
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. wound — an injury
  8. branch — a division
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fall — the season
  17. fall — to drop
  18. calf — a young animal

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