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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 giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. stock — goods
  3. hand — help
  4. last — to go on
  5. band — a ring
  6. hand — in cards
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. band — a music group
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. last — final
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. stock — shares
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. last — finally
  18. chair — a leader
  19. pound — a weight
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. fine — all right
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. fine — high quality

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