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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.

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: racket · row · scale · last · calf · clip · wave · spring

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. last — to go on
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. spring — the season
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. clip — for paper
  7. clip — a video
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. last — finally
  15. scale — in music
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. row — a line
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. spring — of water
  21. last — final
  22. scale — size or range
  23. row — to paddle
  24. spring — a coil

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