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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. march — music
  4. perch — the fish
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. saw — the tool
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. march — the month
  10. cold — not warm
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. march — the month
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. vault — a safe
  18. saw — the tool
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. cold — an illness
  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