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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 seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. ground — a position
  3. clip — a video
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. clip — for paper
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. game — a match
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. shower — to wash
  18. ground — the earth
  19. wind — moving air
  20. shower — rain
  21. game — wild animals
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. ground — crushed

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