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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: bound · spell · cell · clip · fan · calf · mate · mine

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. clip — a video
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. spell — magic
  5. mate — a friend
  6. clip — for paper
  7. mate — to breed
  8. spell — a short time
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bound — obliged
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bound — tied together
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. mine — for digging
  17. spell — letters
  18. bound — certain
  19. mate — a partner
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. cell — in biology
  24. cell — a phone

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