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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. sharp — clever
  3. tear — from crying
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. tear — to rip
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. cue — a signal
  8. chest — of your body
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. cue — a hint
  11. tube — a container
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. race — a contest
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. cue — for pool
  16. chest — of your body
  17. tube — the underground
  18. pass — a permit
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. tear — from crying
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. race — the arms race
  24. race — humankind

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