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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: file · calf · kick · clip · march · rash · leaves · squash

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. squash — the sport
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. file — a document
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. file — a tool
  10. march — the month
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. kick — in football
  14. rash — hasty
  15. march — the month
  16. squash — to crush
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. rash — a series
  20. file — a line of people
  21. clip — a video
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. clip — to cut
  24. march — music

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