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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 120 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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. band — a ring
  3. bark — to shout
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. land — a country
  7. key — in music
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. key — the most important part
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. object — an aim
  15. band — a music group
  16. key — for a lock
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. object — to protest
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. object — a thing
  21. land — ground
  22. land — to come down
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. pitcher — a jug

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