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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. chest — of your body
  5. fall — to drop
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. fall — the season
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bark — to shout
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. plane — a tool
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. chest — a box
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. wake — a trail
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. fall — to drop

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