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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 116 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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. object — an aim
  3. plane — a tool
  4. object — a thing
  5. kick — in football
  6. hand — help
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. shower — to wash
  11. shower — rain
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. object — to protest
  14. tear — from crying
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. kid — child
  20. tear — from crying
  21. stem — to come from
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. hand — in cards
  24. tear — to rip

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