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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 120 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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. clip — for paper
  3. bank — for money
  4. last — final
  5. clip — to cut
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. rock — a stone
  8. bear — the animal
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. wound — an injury
  14. clip — a video
  15. bank — for money
  16. last — finally
  17. bank — of a river
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. bark — to shout
  21. last — to go on
  22. wound — an injury
  23. rock — music
  24. lie — to recline

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