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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.

Make a worksheet

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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. rest — what's left
  3. wound — an injury
  4. tear — from crying
  5. track — to keep track
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. press — newspapers
  8. track — a song
  9. press — to push
  10. press — a publisher
  11. track — a path
  12. tear — to rip
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. rest — a break
  15. bat — the animal
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. wound — an injury
  18. 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