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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. club — a group
  5. ground — the earth
  6. clip — a video
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — to rip
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. saw — the tool
  12. club — for dancing
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. clip — for paper
  16. tear — from crying
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. saw — the tool
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. ground — a position
  22. club — for golf
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. clip — to cut

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