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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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. march — the month
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. branch — a division
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. chair — a leader
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. march — music
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. spell — letters
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. shower — rain
  18. march — the month
  19. shower — to wash
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. spell — a short time
  22. spell — magic
  23. pass — a permit
  24. kick — in football

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