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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. mug — a face
  3. clip — for paper
  4. tear — to rip
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. clip — to cut
  7. court — of law
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. bark — to shout
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. toast — bread
  14. court — for sport
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. mug — a cup
  17. clip — a video
  18. tear — from crying
  19. mug — to rob
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. court — of a king
  22. tear — from crying
  23. sharp — clever
  24. coach — a trainer

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