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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: chair · bay · pop · can · straw · face · calf · clip

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. can — to be able to
  5. pop — music
  6. clip — for paper
  7. can — a tin
  8. face — to point toward
  9. pop — soda
  10. pop — to visit
  11. clip — a video
  12. chair — a leader
  13. can — a tin
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. face — to confront
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. face — part of the head
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. clip — to cut

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