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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. current — electric
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. field — a subject
  7. object — to protest
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. field — farmland
  10. object — an aim
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. object — a thing
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. hand — help
  16. current — of water
  17. hand — in cards
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. spring — the season
  20. branch — a division
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. current — happening now
  23. spring — of water
  24. spring — a coil

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