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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. tear — to rip
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pop — soda
  8. chest — of your body
  9. rest — what's left
  10. chest — a box
  11. rest — a break
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. pop — music
  16. pitch — completely
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. tear — from crying
  21. date — the fruit
  22. tear — from crying
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. rest — what's left

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