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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: cold · calf · plane · field · rock · cue · branch · toast

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. cue — for pool
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. branch — a division
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. field — a subject
  12. field — farmland
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cue — a signal
  16. rock — music
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cue — a hint
  19. cold — an illness
  20. field — for sport
  21. rock — a stone
  22. plane — a tool
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. toast — bread

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