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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: current · hide · snap · clip · staff · mate · tear · season

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. mate — a partner
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. season — in sport
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. staff — employees
  8. clip — for paper
  9. staff — employees
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. tear — to rip
  12. current — electric
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. current — of water
  15. clip — a video
  16. tear — from crying
  17. season — of the year
  18. mate — a friend
  19. snap — to click
  20. current — happening now
  21. clip — to cut
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. staff — a stick
  24. mate — to breed

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