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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. chip — for betting
  3. tear — from crying
  4. key — in music
  5. bound — tied together
  6. tear — from crying
  7. fall — to drop
  8. saw — the tool
  9. shower — to wash
  10. saw — the tool
  11. net — after costs
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. key — the most important part
  14. bound — obliged
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. net — for catching
  18. fall — the season
  19. bound — certain
  20. fall — to drop
  21. tear — to rip
  22. key — for a lock
  23. chip — to eat
  24. shower — rain

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