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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 120 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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  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 — to rip
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. cap — a lid
  4. cell — a phone
  5. cap — a hat
  6. chest — of your body
  7. tear — from crying
  8. pass — a permit
  9. band — a music group
  10. swing — to play on
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. chest — of your body
  13. saw — the tool
  14. swing — in golf
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. cell — in biology
  17. cap — of ice
  18. chest — a box
  19. swing — music
  20. saw — the tool
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. band — a ring
  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