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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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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: pass · clip · mine · fall · calf · swing · kick · game

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. fall — the season
  4. swing — music
  5. kick — in football
  6. swing — to play on
  7. fall — to drop
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. swing — in golf
  10. clip — for paper
  11. mine — for digging
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. game — wild animals
  14. pass — a permit
  15. clip — to cut
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. clip — a video
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. game — a match
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. calf — of the leg

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