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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. tear — from crying
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. hand — in cards
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. hand — help
  12. tear — to rip
  13. cold — an illness
  14. pass — a permit
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. shower — to wash
  17. season — in sport
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. cold — not warm
  21. shower — rain
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. season — of the year
  24. tear — from crying

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