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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: clip · court · wind · calf · spring · bank · lean · scale

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. spring — the season
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. scale — in music
  7. lean — thin
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. bank — of a river
  10. spring — of water
  11. wind — moving air
  12. bank — for money
  13. court — of a king
  14. lean — to bend
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. bank — for money
  17. spring — a coil
  18. clip — to cut
  19. court — for sport
  20. wind — moving air
  21. clip — a video
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. scale — size or range
  24. court — of law

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