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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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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: wound · clip · tear · safe · lean · bore · perch · capital

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. tear — to rip
  3. clip — for paper
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. lean — to bend
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. perch — the fish
  9. capital — a city
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. wound — an injury
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — from crying
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. bore — to tire
  19. bore — to drill
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. clip — a video
  22. lean — thin
  23. clip — to cut
  24. capital — money

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