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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. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. march — the month
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. march — music
  6. drill — the tool
  7. spell — letters
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. drill — a practice
  10. spell — a short time
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. cold — an illness
  14. spell — magic
  15. march — the month
  16. wake — a trail
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. drill — army training
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. stem — to come from
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. cold — not warm

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