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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 120 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: row · fall · fan · calf · arm · season · sharp · current

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. fall — to drop
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fall — the season
  9. season — of the year
  10. sharp — clever
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. season — in sport
  14. fall — to drop
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. row — a line
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. current — happening now
  20. current — electric
  21. row — to paddle
  22. current — of water
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. calf — a young animal

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