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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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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 light ________________ burned out.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. file — a tool
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. pound — a weight
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. clip — for paper
  9. file — a line of people
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. file — a document
  13. clip — to cut
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. bulb — for light
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. clip — a video
  18. calf — of the leg

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