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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. bore — to tire
  3. spell — a short time
  4. bore — to drill
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. spell — magic
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. row — to paddle
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bear — the animal
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. spell — letters
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. branch — a division
  23. mine — for digging
  24. row — a line

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