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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: chair · tear · calf · plane · mine · game · toast · bark

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. tear — to rip
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. bark — to shout
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. tear — from crying
  12. chair — a leader
  13. tear — from crying
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. plane — a tool
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. game — wild animals
  21. toast — bread
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. game — a match

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