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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. race — humankind
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. race — the arms race
  6. tear — to rip
  7. lean — thin
  8. bat — the animal
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. land — to come down
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. land — a country
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. lean — to bend
  15. race — a contest
  16. present — a gift
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. present — there
  19. present — the time now
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. land — ground
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. tear — from crying

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