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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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. clip — for paper
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. board — a committee
  10. saw — the tool
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. board — to get on
  13. snap — to click
  14. perch — the fish
  15. saw — the tool
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. wake — a trail
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. clip — a video
  23. clip — to cut
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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