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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. rest — a break
  5. bound — tied together
  6. bound — obliged
  7. wake — a trail
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bore — to tire
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. hand — help
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. branch — a division
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. bound — certain
  18. rest — what's left
  19. rest — what's left
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. hand — in cards

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