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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.

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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: kick · calf · chair · vault · squash · bark · spell · clip

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. vault — a safe
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. spell — a short time
  8. squash — to crush
  9. chair — a leader
  10. clip — for paper
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. clip — a video
  15. kick — in football
  16. bark — to shout
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. squash — the sport
  21. clip — to cut
  22. spell — magic
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. spell — letters

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