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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. tear — from crying
  4. cue — a signal
  5. tear — to rip
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. court — of a king
  9. mark — a trace
  10. bore — to drill
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. mate — a partner
  13. mate — to breed
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. mate — a friend
  16. cue — for pool
  17. clip — to cut
  18. tear — from crying
  19. clip — a video
  20. clip — for paper
  21. court — for sport
  22. court — of law
  23. cue — a hint
  24. bore — to tire

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