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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. bore — to tire
  3. board — to get on
  4. perch — the fish
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. kid — child
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. bulb — for light
  10. clip — to cut
  11. tube — the underground
  12. clip — a video
  13. tube — a container
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. kid — to tease
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. board — a committee
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. clip — for paper
  20. bore — to drill
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. bulb — for light

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