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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: calf · rush · cold · trunk · dip · clip · net · board

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. net — in sport
  7. net — for catching
  8. clip — a video
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. board — to get on
  11. cold — an illness
  12. clip — for paper
  13. rush — hurry
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. net — after costs
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. cold — not warm
  19. board — a committee
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. dip — to sink
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. cold — the Cold War

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