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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. club — a group
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. cold — an illness
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. season — of the year
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. face — to confront
  11. face — part of the head
  12. club — for golf
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. club — for dancing
  17. face — to point toward
  18. branch — a division
  19. season — in sport
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. cold — not warm
  22. rock — music
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. rock — a stone

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