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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: ball · kick · mark · tear · cabinet · clip · racket · bear

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. clip — for paper
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bear — the animal
  5. clip — a video
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. mark — a trace
  8. tear — from crying
  9. mark — a grade
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. tear — to rip
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. ball — a great time
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. kick — in football
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. tear — from crying
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. ball — a dance

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