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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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Word bank
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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: mate · tear · pitch · clip · present · current

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. pitch — completely
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. tear — from crying
  5. current — happening now
  6. clip — to cut
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. current — of water
  9. clip — a video
  10. mate — a friend
  11. tear — to rip
  12. clip — for paper
  13. mate — to breed
  14. current — electric
  15. mate — a partner
  16. present — the time now
  17. tear — from crying
  18. present — a gift

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