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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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. tear — from crying
  4. snap — to click
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. can — a tin
  7. tear — from crying
  8. lie — to recline
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. stand — to bear
  12. capital — money
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. pitch — completely
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. tear — to rip
  18. clip — to cut
  19. clip — a video
  20. clip — for paper
  21. can — to be able to
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. capital — a city
  24. can — a tin

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