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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. bound — certain
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tube — a container
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. tube — the underground
  9. pop — soda
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. perch — the fish
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. cap — a lid
  17. cap — of ice
  18. bound — obliged
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. tear — to rip
  21. cap — a hat
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pop — music
  24. bound — tied together

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