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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. clip — to cut
  9. march — the month
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. march — music
  12. swing — music
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. swing — to play on
  15. swing — in golf
  16. clip — a video
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. deal — to handle
  19. cell — a phone
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. cell — in biology
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. march — the month

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