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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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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: bat · calf · fork · patient · safe · trunk · mate · branch

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. mate — a partner
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. mate — to breed
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. mate — a friend
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. fork — in a road
  16. bat — the animal
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. branch — a division
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. fork — to eat with

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