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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. chip — to eat
  3. pound — a weight
  4. hand — in cards
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. capital — a city
  8. clip — to cut
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. fine — high quality
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — for paper
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. fine — all right
  21. capital — money
  22. chip — for betting
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. hand — help

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