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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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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: ruler · arm · racket · shower · lie · tear · club · clip

  1. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. club — a group
  3. tear — to rip
  4. clip — for paper
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. clip — to cut
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. club — for dancing
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. shower — to wash
  15. tear — from crying
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. clip — a video
  18. tear — from crying
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. club — for golf
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. shower — rain

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