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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. shower — to wash
  4. lean — thin
  5. tear — from crying
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. squash — the sport
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. tear — to rip
  13. shower — rain
  14. lean — to bend
  15. squash — to crush
  16. bat — the animal
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. tear — from crying
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. pass — a permit
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. pass — to spend time

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