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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 had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. season — of the year
  5. stem — to come from
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. cold — an illness
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. season — in sport
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. branch — a division
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cold — not warm
  22. kid — to tease
  23. kid — child
  24. wake — a trail

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