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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 116 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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. clip — to cut
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. mate — a partner
  5. hand — help
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. clip — a video
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. mate — to breed
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. clip — for paper
  14. perch — the fish
  15. bear — the animal
  16. hand — in cards
  17. mate — a friend
  18. bear — the 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