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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. tear — from crying
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. tear — to rip
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. degree — temperature
  12. fork — in a road
  13. degree — an amount
  14. degree — from a university
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. stem — to come from
  18. pass — a permit
  19. tear — from crying
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. trunk — of a car

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