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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: straw · calf · hand · clip · branch · race · lie · shower

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. hand — help
  3. clip — for paper
  4. clip — a video
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. clip — to cut
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. race — the arms race
  9. shower — rain
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. branch — a division
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. hand — in cards
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. shower — to wash
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. race — a contest
  20. race — humankind
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. lie — to recline
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. straw — a straw man

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