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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: cold · bore · club · calf · board · wave · field · scale

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. cold — not warm
  3. field — a subject
  4. field — farmland
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. bore — to tire
  7. club — for dancing
  8. cold — an illness
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. scale — size or range
  12. bore — to drill
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. club — a group
  17. field — for sport
  18. board — to get on
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. club — for golf
  21. board — a committee
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. scale — in music

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