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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. field — for sport
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. branch — a division
  6. wound — an injury
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. field — farmland
  18. rash — a series
  19. wound — an injury
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. rash — hasty
  23. field — a subject
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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