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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 124 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 is an ace ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — from crying
  5. object — an aim
  6. clip — for paper
  7. wound — an injury
  8. object — a thing
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. wound — an injury
  11. rule — a law
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. rule — government
  18. clip — to cut
  19. object — to protest
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. clip — a video
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. tear — to rip

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