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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 lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. present — there
  3. craft — boats
  4. craft — a skill
  5. clip — to cut
  6. bear — the animal
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. present — the time now
  9. clip — for paper
  10. ground — the earth
  11. tear — from crying
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. clip — a video
  14. bear — the animal
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. chest — of your body
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. ground — crushed
  19. ground — a position
  20. present — a gift
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — to rip
  23. foot — a measure
  24. chest — of your 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