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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 120 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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. present — there
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. field — a subject
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. present — the time now
  8. fork — in a road
  9. kick — in football
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. clip — for paper
  12. clip — a video
  13. field — for sport
  14. pitch — completely
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. present — a gift
  20. tear — from crying
  21. branch — a division
  22. tear — from crying
  23. field — farmland
  24. tear — to rip

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