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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. fall — to drop
  3. staff — a stick
  4. tear — from crying
  5. staff — employees
  6. shower — to wash
  7. object — to protest
  8. object — a thing
  9. squash — the sport
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. shower — rain
  12. field — a subject
  13. tear — to rip
  14. fall — the season
  15. field — for sport
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. field — farmland
  18. tear — from crying
  19. fall — to drop
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. wax — to grow
  22. staff — employees
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. squash — to crush

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