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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 116 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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. cell — in biology
  3. last — finally
  4. fall — to drop
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. swing — to play on
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. cell — a phone
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. last — to go on
  13. fall — to drop
  14. rock — a stone
  15. fall — the season
  16. rock — music
  17. swing — music
  18. swing — in golf

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