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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. tear — from crying
  3. last — finally
  4. hand — in cards
  5. staff — employees
  6. last — to go on
  7. last — final
  8. clip — to cut
  9. mug — a cup
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. tear — from crying
  15. staff — a stick
  16. hand — help
  17. clip — for paper
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. wake — a trail
  20. mug — a face
  21. tear — to rip
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. mug — to rob
  24. staff — employees

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