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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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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. clip — to cut
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. clip — for paper
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. cold — not warm
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. face — part of the head
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. clip — a video
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. face — to confront

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