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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. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. clip — for paper
  5. plane — a tool
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. cold — not warm
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. cold — an illness
  14. key — for a lock
  15. roll — a cake
  16. stand — to bear
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. key — the most important part
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. roll — a list
  21. clip — a video
  22. clip — to cut
  23. kick — in football
  24. key — in music

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