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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 is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. content — the amount
  3. charge — a price
  4. clip — to cut
  5. charge — electricity
  6. content — happy
  7. clip — for paper
  8. tear — from crying
  9. clip — a video
  10. key — the most important part
  11. cap — of ice
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. charge — in control
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. key — for a lock
  18. cap — a hat
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. tear — from crying
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. cap — a lid
  24. key — in music

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