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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. field — for sport
  3. bark — to shout
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. tear — from crying
  6. field — a subject
  7. fall — to drop
  8. stock — shares
  9. object — to protest
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. field — farmland
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. race — humankind
  15. object — an aim
  16. fall — to drop
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. race — the arms race
  20. race — a contest
  21. stock — goods
  22. tear — to rip
  23. fall — the season
  24. object — a thing

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