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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
468
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: scale · clip · bore · mine · fall · fine · calf · prune

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. scale — in music
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. scale — size or range
  5. clip — for paper
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. fall — the season
  8. clip — a video
  9. mine — for digging
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. fine — all right
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. prune — to trim
  15. bore — to drill
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. clip — to cut
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fine — high quality
  21. prune — to trim
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. bore — to tire
  24. fall — to drop

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