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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 120 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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. land — to come down
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. can — a tin
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. land — a country
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. land — ground
  10. can — to be able to
  11. wind — moving air
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. chair — a leader
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. can — a tin
  16. rest — what's left
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. wound — an injury
  19. last — final
  20. rest — what's left
  21. wind — moving air
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. last — finally
  24. last — to go on

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