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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. drill — a practice
  3. clip — for paper
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. wind — moving air
  8. drill — army training
  9. scale — in music
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. tear — from crying
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. clip — to cut
  15. race — humankind
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. tear — from crying
  18. lie — to recline
  19. clip — a video
  20. scale — size or range
  21. wind — moving air
  22. drill — the tool
  23. race — a contest
  24. race — the arms race

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