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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. rest — a break
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. tear — to rip
  6. land — ground
  7. stem — to come from
  8. squash — to crush
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — what's left
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. object — an aim
  14. object — a thing
  15. land — a country
  16. squash — the sport
  17. tear — from crying
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. tear — from crying
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. dip — to sink
  22. land — to come down
  23. stand — to bear
  24. stand — for spectators

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