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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: plane · hand · fall · field · temple · spring · snap · calf

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. spring — of water
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. fall — the season
  5. fall — to drop
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. fall — to drop
  8. field — farmland
  9. hand — in cards
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. snap — to click
  12. field — for sport
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. spring — a coil
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. hand — help
  21. plane — a tool
  22. field — a subject
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. spring — the season

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