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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. clip — for paper
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. pitch — completely
  6. clip — a video
  7. bear — the animal
  8. tear — to rip
  9. ground — a position
  10. clip — to cut
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. ground — the earth
  13. key — for a lock
  14. bear — the animal
  15. court — for sport
  16. court — of a king
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — from crying
  19. key — the most important part
  20. key — in music
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. court — of law
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. wave — of the sea

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