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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. pass — a permit
  5. ground — crushed
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. clip — to cut
  8. kick — in football
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. wind — moving air
  12. clip — a video
  13. lean — thin
  14. ground — the earth
  15. ground — a position
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. wind — moving air
  19. lean — to bend
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. clip — for paper

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