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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. cell — a phone
  4. field — a subject
  5. ground — a position
  6. bore — to drill
  7. cell — in biology
  8. bank — for money
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. field — farmland
  11. bank — for money
  12. ground — the earth
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. bank — of a river
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. bore — to tire
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. plane — a tool
  22. ground — crushed
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. field — for sport

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