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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. wound — an injury
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. squash — to crush
  8. face — to confront
  9. squash — the sport
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. band — a ring
  13. pound — a weight
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. wound — an injury
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. mine — for digging
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. face — part of the head
  23. face — to point toward
  24. band — a music group

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