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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: bear · capital · straw · season · lie · suit · clip · tear

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. tear — from crying
  3. season — in sport
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. bear — the animal
  6. clip — to cut
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. tear — to rip
  10. suit — clothes
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. capital — money
  13. clip — for paper
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. lie — to recline
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. season — of the year
  18. suit — in cards
  19. capital — a city
  20. bear — the animal
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. suit — to fit
  23. clip — a video
  24. tear — from crying

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