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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. fine — all right
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. clip — for paper
  6. clip — to cut
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. stand — to bear
  9. clip — a video
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. court — of a king
  13. press — to push
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. press — a publisher
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. court — for sport
  20. fine — high quality
  21. court — of law
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. press — newspapers
  24. plane — a tool

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