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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. object — to protest
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. mug — a face
  7. mug — a cup
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. object — a thing
  10. clip — a video
  11. mug — to rob
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. squash — the sport
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. squash — to crush
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. clip — to cut
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. object — an aim
  22. branch — a division
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. rush — hurry

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