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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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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: row · mug · mate · clip · cap · tear

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. row — to paddle
  3. mate — a friend
  4. clip — for paper
  5. row — a line
  6. clip — to cut
  7. mate — a partner
  8. clip — a video
  9. tear — to rip
  10. mug — to rob
  11. cap — a lid
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. cap — a hat
  14. mate — to breed
  15. tear — from crying
  16. mug — a cup
  17. cap — of ice
  18. mug — a face

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