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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 124 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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. rash — hasty
  3. clip — a video
  4. can — a tin
  5. bulb — for light
  6. root — of a word
  7. clip — to cut
  8. tear — from crying
  9. chest — a box
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. root — of a plant
  13. chest — of your body
  14. can — to be able to
  15. chest — of your body
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. root — the cause
  18. clip — for paper
  19. tear — to rip
  20. bulb — for light
  21. tear — from crying
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. pass — a permit
  24. rash — a series

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