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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. game — wild animals
  3. fall — the season
  4. game — a match
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. tear — from crying
  7. key — the most important part
  8. tear — from crying
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. fall — to drop
  11. last — finally
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. key — in music
  14. bark — to shout
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. key — for a lock
  17. wound — an injury
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. last — final
  20. wound — an injury
  21. tear — to rip
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. last — to go on

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