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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. wind — moving air
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. tear — from crying
  5. tear — to rip
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. clip — a video
  9. clip — to cut
  10. band — a music group
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. chair — a leader
  17. wind — moving air
  18. clip — for paper
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. face — part of the head
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. band — a ring
  23. face — to point toward
  24. face — to confront

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