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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: tear · rock · pit · wind · clip · tube · squash · spell

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. tear — from crying
  3. pit — a hole
  4. wind — moving air
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. squash — the sport
  7. clip — to cut
  8. tear — to rip
  9. spell — a short time
  10. rock — music
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. tube — the underground
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wind — moving air
  15. tear — from crying
  16. clip — a video
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. spell — letters
  19. tube — a container
  20. clip — for paper
  21. rock — a stone
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. squash — to crush
  24. spell — magic

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