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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. clip — a video
  3. clip — to cut
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. spell — a short time
  10. bat — the animal
  11. spell — letters
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. ball — a great time
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. spell — magic
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. clip — for paper
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. ball — a dance
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. wave — with your hand

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