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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. club — for golf
  4. clip — a video
  5. rest — a break
  6. lie — to recline
  7. club — for dancing
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. rest — what's left
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. clip — to cut
  13. rest — what's left
  14. ground — the earth
  15. ground — crushed
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. club — a group
  18. mine — for digging
  19. ground — a position
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. rock — a stone
  23. rock — music
  24. rock — to move gently

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