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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. file — a document
  4. mate — a friend
  5. swing — music
  6. swing — in golf
  7. mate — to breed
  8. clip — a video
  9. board — to get on
  10. clip — to cut
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. mate — a partner
  13. current — of water
  14. last — final
  15. file — a tool
  16. swing — to play on
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. current — happening now
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. last — to go on
  21. board — a committee
  22. file — a line of people
  23. current — electric
  24. last — finally

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