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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. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. sharp — clever
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. bore — to tire
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. bore — to drill
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. clip — a video
  11. tear — to rip
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. tear — from crying
  14. clip — to cut
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. tear — from crying
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. clip — for paper
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. toast — bread
  24. bay — a horse colour

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