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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. suit — in cards
  3. stem — to come from
  4. last — finally
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. suit — to fit
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. suit — clothes
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. last — to go on
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. last — final
  17. row — a line
  18. row — to paddle
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. pit — in a race
  21. pit — a hole
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. band — a music group
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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