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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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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: bank · field · firm · rest · wound · row · calf · prune

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. firm — decided
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. firm — steady
  7. field — for sport
  8. prune — to trim
  9. field — farmland
  10. firm — a company
  11. bank — for money
  12. prune — to trim
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. row — a line
  15. field — a subject
  16. row — to paddle
  17. bank — of a river
  18. rest — what's left
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. wound — an injury
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. wound — an injury
  23. bank — for money
  24. rest — what's left

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