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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. tear — to rip
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. clip — to cut
  6. scale — size or range
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. clip — a video
  9. clip — for paper
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. bear — the animal
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. tear — from crying
  14. club — a group
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. club — for dancing
  17. wake — a trail
  18. bear — the animal
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. club — for golf
  22. tear — from crying
  23. scale — in music
  24. lash — to lash out

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