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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. present — there
  5. present — the time now
  6. can — a tin
  7. fall — to drop
  8. tube — the underground
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. tear — to rip
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. can — a tin
  15. tear — from crying
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. fall — to drop
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. can — to be able to
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tube — a container
  22. fall — the season
  23. bat — the animal
  24. temple — a place of worship

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