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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'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. tear — from crying
  3. fall — the season
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. content — happy
  6. firm — a company
  7. tear — from crying
  8. club — for dancing
  9. capital — a city
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. tear — to rip
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. fall — to drop
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. capital — money
  17. club — for golf
  18. firm — decided
  19. club — a group
  20. branch — a division
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. fall — to drop
  24. content — the amount

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