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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: tear · band · ball · calf · pitch · wound · perch · stock

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. tear — to rip
  4. wound — an injury
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. band — a ring
  7. tear — from crying
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. stock — shares
  10. pitch — completely
  11. ball — a great time
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. ball — a dance
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. tear — from crying
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. band — a music group
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. perch — the fish
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. stock — goods

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