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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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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: pound · saw · wake · calf · clip · tear · sharp · spell

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. clip — to cut
  3. clip — a video
  4. saw — the tool
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. sharp — clever
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. tear — to rip
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. tear — from crying
  14. saw — the tool
  15. spell — letters
  16. spell — magic
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. tear — from crying
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. wake — a trail
  22. spell — a short time
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. clip — for paper

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