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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. content — happy
  3. present — a gift
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. swing — to play on
  6. present — there
  7. content — the amount
  8. craft — a skill
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. bank — for money
  12. land — ground
  13. swing — in golf
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. shower — to wash
  16. bank — of a river
  17. craft — boats
  18. land — a country
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. swing — music
  21. present — the time now
  22. bank — for money
  23. land — to come down
  24. shower — rain

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