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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. lean — to bend
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wound — an injury
  7. stand — to bear
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. pitch — completely
  11. charge — a price
  12. charge — in control
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. tear — to rip
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. date — the fruit
  19. lean — thin
  20. tear — from crying
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. charge — electricity

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