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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 116 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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. sharp — clever
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. mark — a grade
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. stem — to come from
  12. wake — a trail
  13. mark — a trace
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. land — a country
  23. land — to come down
  24. land — ground

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