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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.

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: chair · mark · cabinet · spring · calf · wind · fan · clip

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. clip — to cut
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. spring — of water
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. clip — a video
  8. spring — the season
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. wind — moving air
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. spring — a coil
  15. clip — for paper
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. mark — a grade
  18. chair — a leader
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. wind — moving air
  23. mark — a trace
  24. cabinet — ministers

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