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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: net · mine · calf · tear · firm · branch · wind · fall

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fall — the season
  4. wind — moving air
  5. mine — for digging
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. fall — to drop
  11. wind — moving air
  12. firm — steady
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. branch — a division
  15. tear — to rip
  16. net — in sport
  17. tear — from crying
  18. firm — decided
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. net — after costs
  21. net — for catching
  22. tear — from crying
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. firm — a company

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