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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. cue — a hint
  3. spring — a coil
  4. spring — of water
  5. present — there
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. tear — from crying
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. cue — a signal
  10. hand — in cards
  11. tear — from crying
  12. cue — for pool
  13. present — a gift
  14. wind — moving air
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. wind — moving air
  19. rush — hurry
  20. tear — to rip
  21. spring — the season
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. present — the time now

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