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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. drill — army training
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. row — a line
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. drill — the tool
  8. press — a publisher
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. chair — a leader
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. press — newspapers
  13. row — to paddle
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. drill — a practice
  16. march — the month
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. land — a country
  19. land — ground
  20. press — to push
  21. march — the month
  22. march — music
  23. plane — a tool
  24. land — to come down

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