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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 120 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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bear — the animal
  5. can — to be able to
  6. tear — from crying
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. bear — the animal
  9. game — wild animals
  10. clip — a video
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. mine — for digging
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. game — a match
  18. clip — for paper
  19. clip — to cut
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. can — a tin
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. can — a tin
  24. leaves — of a tree

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