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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. saw — the tool
  3. ball — a great time
  4. clip — a video
  5. stem — to come from
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. bulb — for light
  9. ball — a dance
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. clip — to cut
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — to rip
  20. pound — a weight
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. clip — for paper
  24. saw — the tool

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