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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. pound — a weight
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. saw — the tool
  5. tear — to rip
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. race — a contest
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. firm — a company
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. snap — to click
  12. tear — from crying
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. firm — steady
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — humankind
  18. firm — decided
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. clip — for paper
  21. clip — a video
  22. tear — from crying
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. clip — to cut

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