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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. wound — an injury
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. spring — the season
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. spring — a coil
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. degree — an amount
  11. spring — of water
  12. snap — to click
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. stem — to come from
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. plane — a tool
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. degree — from a university
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. degree — temperature
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. wound — an injury

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