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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 coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. swing — in golf
  3. rash — hasty
  4. tear — to rip
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. object — an aim
  7. object — to protest
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. swing — music
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. object — a thing
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. swing — to play on
  17. dip — to sink
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. tear — from crying
  22. band — a ring
  23. band — a music group
  24. rash — a series

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