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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. mine — for digging
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. cell — a phone
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. branch — a division
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. cell — in biology
  16. last — final
  17. last — to go on
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. last — finally
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. rock — a stone
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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