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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 is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. present — the time now
  5. rash — a series
  6. tear — from crying
  7. present — a gift
  8. bound — obliged
  9. bound — certain
  10. clip — a video
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. tear — from crying
  14. row — to paddle
  15. clip — for paper
  16. row — a line
  17. clip — to cut
  18. pound — a weight
  19. rash — hasty
  20. present — there
  21. bound — tied together
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. pound — to hit hard

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