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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: root · chair · band · row · fall · last · calf · rash

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  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. row — a line
  2. last — to go on
  3. fall — the season
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. last — final
  6. band — a ring
  7. fall — to drop
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. rash — a series
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. row — to paddle
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. root — of a word
  16. root — the cause
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. rash — hasty
  19. chair — a leader
  20. root — of a plant
  21. fall — to drop
  22. band — a music group
  23. calf — a young animal
  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