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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 124 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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. mate — a friend
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. clip — for paper
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bear — the animal
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. lean — thin
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. lean — to bend
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. rule — government
  13. mate — to breed
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. perch — the fish
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. rule — a law
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. clip — a video
  20. degree — temperature
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. degree — an amount
  23. degree — from a university
  24. mate — a partner

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