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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. squash — to crush
  3. clip — a video
  4. press — to push
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. clip — to cut
  7. press — a publisher
  8. bore — to tire
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. bore — to drill
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. squash — the sport
  16. craft — boats
  17. craft — a skill
  18. press — newspapers
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. stem — to come from
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. clip — for paper

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