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

Word bank: calf · snap · land · scale · saw · mate · rock · tear

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. mate — a friend
  3. land — ground
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. saw — the tool
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. tear — from crying
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. rock — music
  11. tear — to rip
  12. scale — in music
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. rock — a stone
  15. snap — to click
  16. scale — size or range
  17. saw — the tool
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. mate — a partner
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. land — to come down
  22. land — a country
  23. tear — from crying
  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