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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: wave · hand · lie · staff · drill · calf · spring · pop

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. staff — a stick
  3. hand — help
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. pop — to visit
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. drill — a practice
  8. pop — soda
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. staff — employees
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. hand — in cards
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. drill — army training
  15. spring — of water
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. spring — a coil
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. lie — to recline
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. pop — music
  23. staff — employees
  24. drill — the tool

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