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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. wound — an injury
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. tear — from crying
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. saw — the tool
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. tear — from crying
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. rush — hurry
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. saw — the tool
  17. mine — for digging
  18. wound — an injury
  19. shower — rain
  20. shower — to wash
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. tear — to rip
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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