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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: craft · last · wind · spell · calf · band · bark · fork

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. last — final
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. last — to go on
  9. spell — letters
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — moving air
  13. fork — in a road
  14. craft — boats
  15. band — a music group
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. spell — magic
  19. band — a ring
  20. spell — a short time
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. craft — a skill
  23. bark — to shout
  24. last — finally

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