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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 seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. pound — a weight
  3. tear — to rip
  4. spring — a coil
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. can — to be able to
  8. spring — of water
  9. tear — from crying
  10. can — a tin
  11. suit — to fit
  12. clip — a video
  13. suit — in cards
  14. spring — the season
  15. can — a tin
  16. scale — size or range
  17. kick — in football
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. tear — from crying
  22. suit — clothes
  23. clip — for paper
  24. scale — in music

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