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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. tear — to rip
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. bound — obliged
  11. tear — from crying
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. clip — for paper
  16. bound — certain
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. clip — to cut
  19. fork — in a road
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. foot — a measure
  22. pass — a permit
  23. tear — from crying
  24. clip — a video

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