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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. tube — a container
  5. can — a tin
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. can — to be able to
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. can — a tin
  14. tube — the underground
  15. kick — in football
  16. perch — the fish
  17. clip — a video
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. clip — for paper
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. clip — to cut
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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