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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. tear — to rip
  4. mine — for digging
  5. spring — of water
  6. game — wild animals
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. game — a match
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. spring — the season
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. tear — from crying
  23. spring — a coil
  24. chair — a leader

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