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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. tear — from crying
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. sharp — clever
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. tear — to rip
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. chair — a leader
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. march — the month
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. board — a committee
  14. clip — a video
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. clip — to cut
  17. clip — for paper
  18. march — music
  19. board — to get on
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. tear — from crying
  23. march — the month
  24. chair — a professorship

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