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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
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. clip — to cut
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. mark — a grade
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. sharp — clever
  7. clip — for paper
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. scale — size or range
  13. scale — in music
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. mark — a trace
  17. clip — a video
  18. calf — a young animal

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