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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 120 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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. rash — hasty
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. clip — for paper
  6. can — a tin
  7. bore — to tire
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. face — part of the head
  10. present — the time now
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. present — a gift
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. present — there
  15. can — to be able to
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. clip — a video
  18. face — to confront
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. face — to point toward
  22. bore — to drill
  23. rash — a series
  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