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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. ground — a position
  4. clip — for paper
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. clip — a video
  7. branch — a division
  8. board — a committee
  9. drill — a practice
  10. board — to get on
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. drill — the tool
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. ground — the earth
  16. clip — to cut
  17. stand — to bear
  18. ground — crushed
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. drill — army training

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