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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. chip — for betting
  6. cell — in biology
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. cell — a phone
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. last — to go on
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. mine — for digging
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. chip — to eat
  20. last — final
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. row — a line
  23. row — to paddle
  24. calf — a young animal

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