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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.

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: calf · wind · mouse · march · content · spring · bore · clip

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. spring — of water
  4. clip — for paper
  5. bore — to tire
  6. bore — to drill
  7. spring — the season
  8. march — the month
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. content — the amount
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. wind — moving air
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. march — the month
  20. march — music
  21. clip — a video
  22. spring — a coil
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. content — happy

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