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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. game — wild animals
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. toast — bread
  5. cap — a lid
  6. tear — to rip
  7. cap — a hat
  8. game — a match
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. rock — a stone
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. clip — a video
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. clip — to cut
  16. tear — from crying
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. cap — of ice
  19. clip — for paper
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. tear — from crying
  24. rock — to move gently

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