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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. clip — for paper
  3. stand — to bear
  4. tear — from crying
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. deal — to handle
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. tear — from crying
  10. spring — of water
  11. net — for catching
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. rest — a break
  15. net — in sport
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. tear — to rip
  18. spring — the season
  19. clip — to cut
  20. rest — what's left
  21. clip — a video
  22. spring — a coil
  23. rest — what's left
  24. net — after costs

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