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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 120 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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. last — finally
  3. clip — a video
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. last — final
  7. game — a match
  8. rush — hurry
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. last — to go on
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. clip — for paper
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. field — for sport
  18. game — wild animals
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. field — a subject
  23. clip — to cut
  24. field — farmland

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