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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. pop — soda
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bank — of a river
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bank — for money
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — what's left
  10. pop — music
  11. fall — to drop
  12. tear — to rip
  13. pop — to visit
  14. bat — the animal
  15. bank — for money
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. fall — to drop
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. fall — the season
  21. tear — from crying
  22. cold — an illness
  23. rest — a break
  24. bat — in an idiom

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