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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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. tear — to rip
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. pitch — completely
  6. tear — from crying
  7. drill — the tool
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. cold — not warm
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. drill — army training
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. stand — to bear
  17. chest — of your body
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. tear — from crying
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. drill — a practice
  24. chest — a box

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