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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  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. dip — to sink
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. tear — from crying
  4. fall — to drop
  5. tube — a container
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. fall — to drop
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. shower — rain
  14. squash — the sport
  15. tear — to rip
  16. tube — the underground
  17. fall — the season
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. shower — to wash
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. tear — from crying
  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