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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bat — the animal
  3. land — a country
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. wind — moving air
  6. stock — goods
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. rule — government
  11. rule — a law
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. wind — moving air
  16. stock — shares
  17. land — ground
  18. tear — from crying
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. land — to come down
  24. tear — to rip

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