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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. tear — from crying
  3. mark — a grade
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. face — to point toward
  7. firm — steady
  8. wind — moving air
  9. cold — an illness
  10. bore — to drill
  11. tear — from crying
  12. mark — a trace
  13. wind — moving air
  14. row — to paddle
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. firm — decided
  17. row — a line
  18. face — part of the head
  19. face — to confront
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. cold — not warm
  23. firm — a company
  24. bore — to tire

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