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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: press · wave · temple · row · last · calf · saw · bat

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. saw — the tool
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. press — newspapers
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. last — final
  14. row — a line
  15. press — to push
  16. row — to paddle
  17. last — to go on
  18. press — a publisher
  19. bat — the animal
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. last — finally
  24. saw — the tool

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