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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 spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. bound — obliged
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. kid — child
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. clip — for paper
  11. bound — certain
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. toast — bread
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. field — farmland
  16. clip — to cut
  17. kid — to tease
  18. field — a subject
  19. clip — a video
  20. field — for sport
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. bound — tied together
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. lash — to lash out

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