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

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. rock — music
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. cell — in biology
  5. tear — from crying
  6. fall — the season
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. rock — a stone
  9. tear — to rip
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. row — to paddle
  15. fall — to drop
  16. row — a line
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. fall — to drop

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