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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: land · arm · calf · leaves · plane · shower · stick · fork

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. shower — to wash
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. land — to come down
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. fork — in a road
  8. land — a country
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. land — ground
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. shower — rain
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. plane — a 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