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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 116 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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. tear — from crying
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. wound — an injury
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. row — to paddle
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. tube — the underground
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. wound — an injury
  12. tube — a container
  13. face — part of the head
  14. row — a line
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. face — to point toward
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. rush — hurry
  21. tear — to rip
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. face — to confront
  24. row — a quarrel

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