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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. cap — a lid
  4. charge — a price
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. cap — of ice
  8. charge — in control
  9. tear — from crying
  10. drill — the tool
  11. cap — a hat
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — to cut
  14. charge — electricity
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. branch — a division
  17. drill — army training
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. date — the fruit
  20. drill — a practice
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. tear — to rip
  24. tear — from crying

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