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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 giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. clip — to cut
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. march — music
  9. march — the month
  10. clip — a video
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. march — the month
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. season — in sport
  19. branch — a division
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. season — of the year
  22. clip — for paper
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. perch — the fish

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