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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. lie — to recline
  3. tube — a container
  4. tube — the underground
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. march — the month
  7. clip — for paper
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. bear — the animal
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. row — to paddle
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. spring — of water
  15. spring — the season
  16. clip — to cut
  17. spring — a coil
  18. bear — the animal
  19. march — the month
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. clip — a video
  22. march — music
  23. stand — to bear
  24. stand — for spectators

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