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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. cold — an illness
  3. pitch — completely
  4. tear — from crying
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. chip — for betting
  8. cold — not warm
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. press — newspapers
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. bore — to drill
  13. bore — to tire
  14. kick — in football
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. file — a document
  17. press — to push
  18. file — a tool
  19. tear — from crying
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. press — a publisher
  22. chip — to eat
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. file — a line of people

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