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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 116 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: clip · spring · content · pound · rule · calf · bank · perch

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. bank — for money
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. spring — of water
  5. bank — of a river
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. clip — for paper
  9. rule — government
  10. rule — a law
  11. clip — to cut
  12. spring — the season
  13. content — happy
  14. content — the amount
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. perch — the fish
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. pound — a weight
  20. clip — a video
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. spring — a coil
  24. bank — for money

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