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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. firm — a company
  5. capital — money
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. bark — to shout
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. firm — decided
  16. stand — to bear
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. sharp — clever
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. band — a music group
  23. firm — steady
  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