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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. tear — to rip
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. squash — the sport
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. march — the month
  11. squash — to crush
  12. march — music
  13. march — the month
  14. tear — from crying
  15. rush — hurry
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. rush — a thrill
  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