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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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. last — final
  3. last — to go on
  4. rock — music
  5. game — wild animals
  6. scale — size or range
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. kid — to tease
  9. bank — of a river
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. bank — for money
  14. stand — to bear
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. last — finally
  17. rock — a stone
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. scale — in music
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. game — a match
  23. kid — child
  24. bank — for money

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