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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. wind — moving air
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. rest — what's left
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. last — final
  9. last — finally
  10. spell — a short time
  11. court — for sport
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. pound — a weight
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. court — of law
  18. spell — magic
  19. court — of a king
  20. wind — moving air
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. spell — letters
  23. last — to go on
  24. rest — a break

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