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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 124 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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. clip — a video
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. tear — from crying
  5. tear — from crying
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. clip — for paper
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. roll — a list
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. roll — a cake
  13. bound — certain
  14. bound — obliged
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. cell — a phone
  18. bound — tied together
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. cell — in biology
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. clip — to cut

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