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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. bore — to tire
  3. foot — a measure
  4. board — a committee
  5. degree — an amount
  6. lean — to bend
  7. lie — to recline
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. tear — from crying
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. degree — from a university
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. board — to get on
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. degree — temperature
  19. bore — to drill
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. tear — from crying
  22. lean — thin
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. straw — dry grass

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