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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. hand — in cards
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. pit — a hole
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. clip — a video
  11. pit — in a race
  12. content — the amount
  13. rock — a stone
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. clip — to cut
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. content — happy
  20. clip — for paper
  21. perch — the fish
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. hand — help
  24. rock — music

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