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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: wind · band · patient · wound · spell · pop · calf · toast

  1. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. wound — an injury
  7. spell — letters
  8. wound — an injury
  9. band — a music group
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. pop — to visit
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wind — moving air
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. pop — music
  18. toast — bread
  19. spell — a short time
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. band — a ring
  23. spell — magic
  24. pop — soda

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