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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. chest — a box
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. chest — of your body
  5. tear — from crying
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. track — a path
  8. content — the amount
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. ground — the earth
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. chest — of your body
  14. ground — crushed
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. ground — a position
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. tear — to rip
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. content — happy
  23. track — to keep track
  24. track — a song

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