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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. mug — a cup
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. tear — from crying
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. key — for a lock
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. clip — to cut
  10. tear — from crying
  11. wind — moving air
  12. key — the most important part
  13. mug — to rob
  14. rule — government
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. current — happening now
  17. current — of water
  18. tear — to rip
  19. current — electric
  20. dip — to sink
  21. clip — a video
  22. mug — a face
  23. key — in music
  24. rule — a law

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