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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. lean — to bend
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. hand — help
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. foot — a measure
  9. hand — in cards
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. scale — in music
  13. wound — an injury
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. scale — size or range
  18. wound — an injury
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. lean — thin
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. bass — low music
  24. bass — the fish

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