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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 124 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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. stand — to bear
  4. row — a line
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. file — a tool
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. row — to paddle
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. present — a gift
  12. file — a line of people
  13. clip — for paper
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. clip — to cut
  17. clip — a video
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. present — there
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. file — a document
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. present — the time now
  24. calf — a young animal

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