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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. degree — from a university
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. branch — a division
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. tear — to rip
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. tear — from crying
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. pitch — completely
  16. row — a line
  17. rock — a stone
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. rock — music
  20. degree — temperature
  21. row — to paddle
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. degree — an amount

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