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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  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. mate — a friend
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. ball — a great time
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. tear — to rip
  7. mate — to breed
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. chest — of your body
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. mate — a partner
  12. dip — to sink
  13. ball — a dance
  14. chest — of your body
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. chest — a box
  17. fall — to drop
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. fall — the season
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. fall — to drop
  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