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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. That must've been 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. fall — the season
  2. hand — in cards
  3. chest — of your body
  4. chest — of your body
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. tear — from crying
  8. rush — hurry
  9. dip — to sink
  10. lie — to recline
  11. fall — to drop
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. tear — to rip
  15. branch — a division
  16. chest — a box
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. fall — to drop
  19. hand — help
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. rush — a thrill
  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