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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 120 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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. drill — army training
  7. firm — steady
  8. clip — for paper
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. drill — the tool
  11. drill — a practice
  12. firm — a company
  13. clip — a video
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. wind — moving air
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. clip — to cut
  21. bark — to shout
  22. firm — decided
  23. wind — moving air
  24. cabinet — ministers

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