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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. clip — to cut
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. key — the most important part
  6. key — in music
  7. perch — the fish
  8. present — there
  9. clip — for paper
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. season — in sport
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. season — of the year
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. key — for a lock
  18. present — the time now
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. pitch — completely
  23. clip — a video
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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