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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 ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. tear — from crying
  4. field — farmland
  5. lean — to bend
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. cold — an illness
  8. cue — a hint
  9. cold — not warm
  10. pit — in a race
  11. pit — a hole
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. tear — to rip
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. cue — for pool
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. field — for sport
  21. cue — a signal
  22. field — a subject
  23. lean — thin
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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