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

Word bank: wind · calf · season · bay · cell · march

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. wind — moving air
  3. march — the month
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. season — of the year
  6. season — in sport
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. march — the month
  9. march — music
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. wind — moving air
  12. cell — a phone
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. calf — of the leg

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