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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 116 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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. cell — a phone
  3. race — humankind
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. march — music
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. face — to confront
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. face — part of the head
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. race — a contest
  12. cell — in biology
  13. face — to point toward
  14. march — the month
  15. race — the arms race
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. perch — the fish
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. march — the month
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. branch — a division

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