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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 was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. last — to go on
  3. field — farmland
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. drill — a practice
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. field — a subject
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. branch — a division
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. drill — the tool
  18. last — finally
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. mine — for digging
  21. drill — army training
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. field — for sport
  24. last — final

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