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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. firm — a company
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. mine — for digging
  5. bore — to drill
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. bore — to tire
  8. fall — to drop
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. fall — the season
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. clip — a video
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. fall — to drop
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. ground — the earth
  18. tube — a container
  19. ground — crushed
  20. tube — the underground
  21. firm — decided
  22. firm — steady
  23. clip — for paper
  24. ground — a position

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