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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. prune — to trim
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. present — the time now
  7. clip — for paper
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. field — a subject
  10. pound — a weight
  11. field — farmland
  12. prune — to trim
  13. field — for sport
  14. object — an aim
  15. present — there
  16. clip — a video
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. present — a gift
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. object — a thing
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. object — to protest
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. trunk — 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