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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.

Make a worksheet

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: march · pitcher · clip · calf · perch · kick · mug · capital

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. mug — to rob
  3. mug — a face
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. mug — a cup
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. march — music
  10. march — the month
  11. march — the month
  12. capital — money
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. capital — a city
  15. clip — for paper
  16. perch — the fish
  17. clip — to cut
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. clip — a video
  22. kick — in football
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. perch — for a bird

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