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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. ground — a position
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. clip — for paper
  10. ground — crushed
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. ball — a great time
  16. clip — a video
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. ball — a dance
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. ground — the earth
  23. clip — to cut
  24. bark — to shout

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