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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bark · wave · capital · calf · chest · bowl

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. capital — money
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. chest — of your body
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. chest — a box
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. bark — to shout
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. capital — a city
  17. chest — of your body
  18. wave — a sudden rise

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