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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 teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. cap — a hat
  5. clip — a video
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. fall — the season
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. clip — to cut
  10. cap — a lid
  11. cap — of ice
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. game — a match
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. fall — to drop
  16. game — wild animals
  17. clip — for paper
  18. mine — for digging
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. fall — to drop
  22. roll — a cake
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. game — a kind of play

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