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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. tear — from crying
  3. bear — the animal
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. court — for sport
  6. court — of a king
  7. tear — from crying
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. bear — the animal
  11. tear — to rip
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. clip — for paper
  14. clip — a video
  15. clip — to cut
  16. pitch — completely
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. court — of law
  19. kick — in football
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. leaves — lets stay

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