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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 116 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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. clip — for paper
  4. shower — to wash
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. pitch — completely
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. clip — a video
  10. face — to confront
  11. clip — to cut
  12. face — to point toward
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. content — happy
  19. shower — rain
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. content — the amount
  24. face — part of the head

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