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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. mate — a partner
  3. pit — a hole
  4. branch — a division
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. file — a document
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. rule — government
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. file — a tool
  12. mate — to breed
  13. stock — goods
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. mate — a friend
  16. pit — in a race
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. field — a subject
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. file — a line of people
  21. rule — a law
  22. field — for sport
  23. stock — shares
  24. field — farmland

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