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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. wind — moving air
  4. fall — to drop
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. squash — to crush
  7. clip — for paper
  8. squash — the sport
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. wind — moving air
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. clip — to cut
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. fall — to drop
  19. roll — a list
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. clip — a video
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. fall — the season

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