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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. rest — a break
  3. clip — for paper
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — to cut
  7. plane — a tool
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. rest — what's left
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. lean — thin
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. perch — the fish
  18. bat — the animal
  19. pound — a weight
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. lean — to bend
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. bat — for baseball

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