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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. ball — a dance
  3. bass — low music
  4. shower — rain
  5. shower — to wash
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. chest — a box
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. chest — of your body
  11. tear — from crying
  12. ball — a great time
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. stand — to bear
  15. lie — to recline
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. chest — of your body
  20. bass — the fish
  21. tear — to rip
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. stand — for spectators

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