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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. spring — a coil
  3. swing — to play on
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. face — part of the head
  6. tear — from crying
  7. swing — music
  8. face — to point toward
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. swing — in golf
  12. land — ground
  13. land — a country
  14. tube — the underground
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. spring — of water
  17. spring — the season
  18. tear — to rip
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. face — to confront
  21. tube — a container
  22. land — to come down
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. arm — a part of something

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