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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mate — a friend
  4. file — a tool
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. file — a line of people
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. mate — to breed
  9. fine — all right
  10. rock — a stone
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. file — a document
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. mate — a partner
  15. rock — music
  16. fine — high quality
  17. wake — a trail
  18. degree — from a university
  19. degree — an amount
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. degree — temperature
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. calf — a young animal

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