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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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. lie — to recline
  3. craft — boats
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. lean — to bend
  6. lean — thin
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. bore — to tire
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. degree — an amount
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. clip — to cut
  14. drill — army training
  15. degree — temperature
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bear — the animal
  18. craft — a skill
  19. clip — a video
  20. degree — from a university
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. drill — the tool
  23. drill — a practice
  24. bore — to drill

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