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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. clip — to cut
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. rock — a stone
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. clip — for paper
  9. club — for dancing
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. rush — hurry
  12. club — a group
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. court — of a king
  15. court — of law
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. branch — a division
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. rock — music
  23. court — for sport
  24. clip — a video

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