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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. tear — from crying
  3. shower — rain
  4. firm — a company
  5. clip — a video
  6. perch — the fish
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. firm — decided
  9. shower — to wash
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. charge — electricity
  12. tear — from crying
  13. charge — a price
  14. charge — in control
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. snap — to click
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. tear — to rip
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. clip — for paper
  22. clip — to cut
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. perch — for a bird

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