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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 did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. capital — money
  3. capital — a city
  4. net — in sport
  5. net — after costs
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. rush — hurry
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. wound — an injury
  13. spell — magic
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. row — to paddle
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. row — a line
  21. wound — an injury
  22. spell — letters
  23. net — for catching
  24. spell — a short time

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