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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. staff — a stick
  3. wind — moving air
  4. staff — employees
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. rush — hurry
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. swing — in golf
  9. staff — employees
  10. swing — to play on
  11. tear — from crying
  12. wind — moving air
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. tear — to rip
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. swing — music

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