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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: rest · wound · calf · fall · net · stand · date · row

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. rest — a break
  3. wound — an injury
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. net — after costs
  6. rest — what's left
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. stand — to bear
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. net — for catching
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. row — a line
  13. wound — an injury
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fall — the season
  19. rest — what's left
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. date — the fruit
  22. row — to paddle
  23. net — in sport
  24. fall — to drop

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