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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fork — in a road
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. last — final
  8. chair — a leader
  9. wound — an injury
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. last — finally
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. wind — moving air
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. press — newspapers
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. last — to go on
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. press — a publisher
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wind — moving air
  24. press — to push

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