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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. fall — to drop
  3. tear — from crying
  4. present — there
  5. fall — the season
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. perch — the fish
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. fall — to drop
  10. tear — to rip
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. cap — a hat
  15. cap — a lid
  16. present — the time now
  17. tear — from crying
  18. bat — the animal
  19. pitch — completely
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. cap — of ice
  24. present — a gift

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