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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. charge — electricity
  3. current — happening now
  4. charge — in control
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. march — the month
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. last — final
  9. clip — a video
  10. current — of water
  11. clip — to cut
  12. charge — a price
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. march — the month
  15. rest — what's left
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. rest — a break
  19. march — music
  20. current — electric
  21. clip — for paper
  22. last — to go on
  23. last — finally
  24. rest — what's left

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