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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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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: clip · vault · charge · tear · calf · row · hide · trunk

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. charge — in control
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. charge — a price
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. charge — electricity
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. tear — to rip
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. clip — for paper
  18. row — a line
  19. clip — a video
  20. tear — from crying
  21. vault — a safe
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. row — to paddle
  24. tear — from crying

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