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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. march — the month
  3. key — in music
  4. snap — to click
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. craft — boats
  7. craft — a skill
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. clip — a video
  12. deal — to handle
  13. march — the month
  14. wind — moving air
  15. key — the most important part
  16. clip — to cut
  17. key — for a lock
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. march — music
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. clip — for paper
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. craft — a handicraft

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