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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: bound · perch · bulb · pitcher · file · mate · clip · calf

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bound — certain
  5. clip — to cut
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. bound — obliged
  8. clip — a video
  9. mate — a friend
  10. file — a line of people
  11. file — a document
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. bound — tied together
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. file — a tool
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. mate — a partner
  21. bulb — for light
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. perch — the fish
  24. mate — to breed

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