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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. wind — moving air
  3. pitch — completely
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. tear — to rip
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. firm — steady
  8. squash — to crush
  9. wax — to grow
  10. firm — a company
  11. craft — boats
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. firm — decided
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wind — moving air
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. tear — from crying
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. wound — an injury
  21. squash — the sport
  22. craft — a skill
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. squash — the vegetable

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