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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. can — to be able to
  3. row — a line
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. can — a tin
  6. clip — for paper
  7. rash — hasty
  8. row — to paddle
  9. tear — to rip
  10. root — the cause
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. root — of a word
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. object — a thing
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. tear — from crying
  17. rash — a series
  18. plane — a tool
  19. object — an aim
  20. can — a tin
  21. tear — from crying
  22. root — of a plant
  23. object — to protest
  24. clip — a video

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