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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. saw — the tool
  3. mug — to rob
  4. saw — the tool
  5. root — the cause
  6. root — of a word
  7. tear — to rip
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. clip — for paper
  10. mug — a face
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. court — of law
  14. clip — a video
  15. scale — in music
  16. mug — a cup
  17. clip — to cut
  18. root — of a plant
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. tear — from crying
  21. court — of a king
  22. scale — size or range
  23. court — for sport
  24. tear — from crying

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