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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. file — a document
  4. court — of a king
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. file — a tool
  7. court — for sport
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. mine — for digging
  11. bass — low music
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. bark — to shout
  17. file — a line of people
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. court — of law
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. stem — to come from
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. bass — the fish
  24. bass — the instrument

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