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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. clip — to cut
  4. tear — to rip
  5. clip — for paper
  6. press — to push
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. present — a gift
  9. spell — letters
  10. present — there
  11. press — a publisher
  12. saw — the tool
  13. tear — from crying
  14. press — newspapers
  15. saw — the tool
  16. spell — a short time
  17. spell — magic
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. tear — from crying
  20. fork — in a road
  21. present — the time now
  22. bark — to shout
  23. clip — a video
  24. fork — to eat with

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