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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 116 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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. can — to be able to
  4. clip — a video
  5. cap — of ice
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. cap — a lid
  8. root — of a plant
  9. tear — from crying
  10. clip — to cut
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. root — the cause
  13. bark — to shout
  14. can — a tin
  15. clip — for paper
  16. tear — to rip
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. tear — from crying
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. cap — a hat
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. plane — a tool
  24. root — of a word

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