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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. pop — to visit
  3. wound — an injury
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. firm — decided
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. lean — thin
  8. firm — steady
  9. tear — from crying
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. pop — soda
  16. bat — the animal
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. pop — music
  20. lean — to bend
  21. tear — from crying
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. tear — to rip
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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