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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.

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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  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. tear — to rip
  2. tear — from crying
  3. pass — a permit
  4. swing — to play on
  5. net — after costs
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. fall — to drop
  8. swing — in golf
  9. net — for catching
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. fall — the season
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. net — in sport
  14. fall — to drop
  15. snap — to click
  16. swing — music
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  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