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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. perch — the fish
  6. track — a path
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. clip — a video
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. track — to keep track
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. track — a song
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. clip — for paper
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. clip — to cut
  24. kick — in football

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