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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. scale — in music
  6. clip — to cut
  7. clip — for paper
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. tear — from crying
  11. tear — from crying
  12. present — a gift
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. clip — a video
  15. scale — size or range
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. present — there
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. tear — to rip
  22. kid — to tease
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. kid — child

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