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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: arm · calf · fine · perch · rule · wound · clip · nail

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. wound — an injury
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. rule — government
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. clip — for paper
  7. rule — a law
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. fine — all right
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. perch — the fish
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. clip — to cut
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. fine — high quality
  18. wound — an injury
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. clip — a video

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