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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. clip — to cut
  3. bulb — for light
  4. rash — a series
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. face — part of the head
  7. sharp — clever
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. clip — a video
  13. tear — from crying
  14. clip — for paper
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. tear — to rip
  17. face — to confront
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bulb — for light
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. rash — hasty
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. face — to point toward

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