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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 116 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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. clip — to cut
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. tear — from crying
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. stand — to bear
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. rest — a break
  11. sharp — clever
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. mark — a trace
  14. mark — a grade
  15. tear — to rip
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. tear — from crying
  18. rest — what's left
  19. rest — what's left
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. bear — the animal
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. clip — for paper
  24. bear — the animal

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