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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. tear — from crying
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. content — happy
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. tear — from crying
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. rush — hurry
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. pitch — completely
  13. content — the amount
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. file — a tool
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. file — a document
  18. pound — a weight
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. file — a line of people
  22. tear — to rip
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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