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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. content — happy
  7. wind — moving air
  8. squash — the sport
  9. wind — moving air
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. squash — to crush
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. mine — for digging
  16. content — the amount
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. pass — a permit
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. mine — an explosive

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