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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: bat · fan · jam · snap · staff · chair · calf · clip

  1. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. clip — to cut
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. clip — a video
  7. bat — the animal
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. chair — a leader
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. snap — to click
  19. clip — for paper
  20. staff — employees
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. staff — employees
  23. staff — a stick
  24. chair — a professorship

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