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

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. spell — a short time
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. tear — to rip
  6. mug — a face
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. land — ground
  9. tear — from crying
  10. chest — of your body
  11. lie — to recline
  12. chest — of your body
  13. land — a country
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. land — to come down
  16. mug — to rob
  17. tear — from crying
  18. clip — to cut
  19. spell — letters
  20. clip — a video
  21. chest — a box
  22. mug — a cup
  23. clip — for paper
  24. patient — a sick person

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