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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. chest — of your body
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. chest — a box
  7. mark — a grade
  8. present — the time now
  9. kick — in football
  10. last — to go on
  11. present — a gift
  12. last — finally
  13. ground — a position
  14. present — there
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. ground — the earth
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. mark — a trace
  20. branch — a division
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. ground — crushed
  24. chest — of your body

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