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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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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. tear — from crying
  4. mug — a cup
  5. lean — thin
  6. track — a song
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. bass — low music
  9. lean — to bend
  10. dip — to sink
  11. mug — to rob
  12. track — to keep track
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — to rip
  18. track — a path

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