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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: wave · last · object · mine · rest · chair · calf · saw

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. last — final
  3. object — an aim
  4. rest — a break
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. object — a thing
  7. chair — a leader
  8. last — to go on
  9. object — to protest
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. saw — the tool
  12. last — finally
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. saw — the tool
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. rest — what's left
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. rest — what's left
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. mine — an explosive

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