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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. can — to be able to
  3. spell — letters
  4. clip — to cut
  5. spell — a short time
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. can — a tin
  8. clip — for paper
  9. spell — magic
  10. season — in sport
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. season — of the year
  14. last — to go on
  15. last — finally
  16. last — final
  17. clip — a video
  18. tear — from crying
  19. ball — a dance
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. ball — a great time
  22. can — a tin
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. tear — to rip

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