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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. tear — from crying
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. mine — for digging
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. chair — a leader
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. kick — in football
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. pitch — completely
  17. tear — to rip
  18. pitch — a sales talk

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