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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. dip — to sink
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. clip — to cut
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. tear — from crying
  8. clip — a video
  9. tear — from crying
  10. chair — a leader
  11. hand — in cards
  12. clip — for paper
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. bore — to tire
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. pitch — completely
  17. bore — to drill
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. hand — help
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. tear — to rip
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. hand — part of the body

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