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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. deal — to handle
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. season — in sport
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. branch — a division
  10. bark — to shout
  11. cold — an illness
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. tear — from crying
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — to rip
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. sharp — clever
  19. cold — not warm
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. season — of the year
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. bark — of a tree

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