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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: clip · fan · face · bat · lean · suit · calf · net

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. face — to confront
  5. suit — clothes
  6. lean — thin
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. clip — a video
  9. clip — for paper
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. suit — to fit
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. face — to point toward
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. net — for catching
  17. suit — in cards
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bat — the animal
  20. face — part of the head
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. net — after costs
  23. net — in sport
  24. lean — to bend

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