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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. wound — an injury
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. lean — to bend
  11. season — of the year
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. land — ground
  14. wound — an injury
  15. land — to come down
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. land — a country
  18. drill — the tool
  19. lean — thin
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. season — in sport
  22. pitch — completely
  23. drill — army training
  24. calf — of the leg

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