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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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. last — finally
  4. cell — a phone
  5. kid — child
  6. last — to go on
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. branch — a division
  9. season — in sport
  10. scale — in music
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. scale — size or range
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. season — of the year
  19. last — final
  20. cell — in biology
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. mark — a grade
  23. kid — to tease
  24. mark — a trace

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