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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. row — a line
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. tear — to rip
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. ground — a position
  7. pound — a weight
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. swing — to play on
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. row — to paddle
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. tear — from crying
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. deal — to handle
  18. swing — in golf
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. ground — the earth
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. ground — crushed
  23. swing — music
  24. calf — of the leg

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