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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. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. face — part of the head
  4. bank — of a river
  5. land — a country
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. field — for sport
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. field — farmland
  11. land — ground
  12. spring — a coil
  13. bank — for money
  14. face — to point toward
  15. bank — for money
  16. wound — an injury
  17. land — to come down
  18. spring — the season
  19. spring — of water
  20. wound — an injury
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. field — a subject
  24. face — to confront

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