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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. tear — from crying
  3. hand — help
  4. charge — electricity
  5. tear — from crying
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. march — the month
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bank — for money
  10. march — the month
  11. charge — a price
  12. clip — a video
  13. tear — to rip
  14. clip — to cut
  15. bear — the animal
  16. march — music
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. bank — of a river
  20. clip — for paper
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bark — to shout
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. bank — for money

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