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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 120 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: arm · branch · cell · scale · clip · row · object · calf

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. scale — in music
  3. object — to protest
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. scale — size or range
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. clip — for paper
  9. cell — a phone
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. row — a line
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. clip — a video
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. row — to paddle
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. object — an aim
  20. branch — a division
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. object — a thing
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. cell — in biology

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