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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. mark — a trace
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. bulb — for light
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. chest — of your body
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. file — a document
  10. tear — to rip
  11. chest — a box
  12. tear — from crying
  13. bulb — for light
  14. chest — of your body
  15. file — a line of people
  16. tear — from crying
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. wake — a trail
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. mark — a grade
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. file — a tool
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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