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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. clip — to cut
  3. drill — the tool
  4. bulb — for light
  5. tear — from crying
  6. clip — for paper
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. tear — from crying
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. bulb — for light
  11. tear — to rip
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mate — a friend
  14. mate — a partner
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. stand — to bear
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. drill — a practice
  20. board — a committee
  21. mate — to breed
  22. mine — for digging
  23. drill — army training
  24. clip — a video

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