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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. shower — to wash
  3. tear — from crying
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. shower — rain
  6. tear — to rip
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. file — a tool
  14. land — to come down
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. land — ground
  17. rash — hasty
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. file — a line of people
  20. toast — bread
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. land — a country
  23. rash — a series
  24. file — a document

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