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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. prune — to trim
  3. object — a thing
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. clip — to cut
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. object — an aim
  8. prune — to trim
  9. deal — to handle
  10. season — of the year
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. pound — a weight
  14. season — in sport
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. clip — a video
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. bark — to shout
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. object — to protest
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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