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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 felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. land — ground
  3. stand — to bear
  4. tear — to rip
  5. tear — from crying
  6. chest — of your body
  7. face — to point toward
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. ground — crushed
  10. drill — army training
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. land — a country
  13. drill — a practice
  14. ground — a position
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — an injury
  17. ground — the earth
  18. face — part of the head
  19. face — to confront
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. chest — a box
  22. drill — the tool
  23. land — to come down
  24. tear — from crying

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