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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 cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. pit — in a race
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. pit — a hole
  10. club — a group
  11. hand — in cards
  12. club — for golf
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. wake — a trail
  15. club — for dancing
  16. foot — a measure
  17. tear — to rip
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. hand — help
  21. row — a line
  22. row — to paddle
  23. tear — from crying
  24. foot — the bottom

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