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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bay · ruler · board · mark · clip · tear

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. tear — to rip
  4. tear — from crying
  5. board — to get on
  6. mark — a trace
  7. board — a committee
  8. clip — a video
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. tear — from crying
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. clip — for paper
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. mark — a grade
  18. bay — a part of the sea

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