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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. stand — to bear
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. tear — from crying
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. snap — to click
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. kick — in football
  14. chest — a box
  15. chest — of your body
  16. tear — from crying
  17. chest — of your body
  18. cold — not warm
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. cold — an illness
  24. fan — to cool the air

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