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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.

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: lean · season · wound · cell · mouse · rock · spell · calf

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. spell — letters
  4. wound — an injury
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. wound — an injury
  7. cell — a phone
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. season — in sport
  12. rock — a stone
  13. lean — to bend
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. rock — music
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. spell — a short time
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. season — of the year
  22. cell — in biology
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. spell — magic

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