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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. sharp — clever
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. content — happy
  5. march — music
  6. content — the amount
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. march — the month
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. march — the month
  21. branch — a division
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. sharp — with an edge

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