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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 120 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: staff · chair · face · band · calf · present · clip · vault

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. chair — a leader
  5. face — to point toward
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. staff — employees
  8. clip — a video
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. staff — a stick
  11. face — to confront
  12. present — a gift
  13. staff — employees
  14. clip — for paper
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. face — part of the head
  17. band — a ring
  18. present — the time now
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. present — there
  22. vault — a safe
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. band — a music group

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