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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. branch — a division
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. tube — a container
  8. sharp — clever
  9. spring — a coil
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. spring — of water
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. wound — an injury
  14. spring — the season
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. tube — the underground
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. chair — a leader
  22. wound — an injury
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. lash — an eyelash

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