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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bark — to shout
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — a video
  5. clip — for paper
  6. tear — from crying
  7. rule — a law
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. mug — to rob
  10. mug — a face
  11. mark — a grade
  12. track — to keep track
  13. track — a path
  14. ball — a dance
  15. tear — to rip
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. mark — a trace
  18. ball — a great time
  19. track — a song
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. mug — a cup
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. rule — government

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