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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. march — the month
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. clip — for paper
  6. mug — to rob
  7. tear — from crying
  8. chip — to eat
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. tear — from crying
  12. chip — for betting
  13. can — a tin
  14. tear — to rip
  15. can — a tin
  16. can — to be able to
  17. wind — moving air
  18. mug — a cup
  19. clip — a video
  20. rash — a series
  21. march — the month
  22. march — music
  23. rash — hasty
  24. mug — a face

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