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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. fine — all right
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. file — a document
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. rest — what's left
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. board — a committee
  10. file — a tool
  11. rest — what's left
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. rest — a break
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. file — a line of people
  17. board — to get on
  18. wake — a trail

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