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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. clip — a video
  3. kick — in football
  4. mark — a trace
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. ball — a great time
  8. clip — to cut
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. clip — for paper
  11. mark — a grade
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. tear — from crying
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. tear — to rip
  18. ball — a dance

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