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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. tear — from crying
  3. pitch — completely
  4. bank — of a river
  5. bound — tied together
  6. clip — a video
  7. bound — obliged
  8. land — to come down
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. tear — from crying
  11. land — a country
  12. bank — for money
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. bound — certain
  15. snap — to click
  16. tear — to rip
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. land — ground
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. clip — for paper
  23. bank — for money
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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