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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 116 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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. firm — a company
  3. clip — a video
  4. tube — the underground
  5. face — to confront
  6. tube — a container
  7. face — part of the head
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. degree — temperature
  11. tear — to rip
  12. firm — decided
  13. tear — from crying
  14. clip — to cut
  15. tear — from crying
  16. cap — a lid
  17. cap — a hat
  18. face — to point toward
  19. degree — an amount
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. cap — of ice
  22. degree — from a university
  23. lie — to recline
  24. firm — steady

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