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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. ground — the earth
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. dip — to sink
  9. ground — a position
  10. ground — crushed
  11. march — the month
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. wound — an injury
  16. march — the month
  17. wound — an injury
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. mine — for digging
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. march — music

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