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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. clip — for paper
  6. foot — a measure
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. clip — to cut
  9. clip — a video
  10. hand — help
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. bulb — for light
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. snap — to click
  16. degree — an amount
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. degree — from a university
  20. degree — temperature
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. bulb — for light
  24. calf — a young animal

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