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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. staff — employees
  3. bore — to drill
  4. tear — from crying
  5. branch — a division
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. staff — a stick
  14. staff — employees
  15. tear — to rip
  16. cell — in biology
  17. bore — to tire
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. tear — from crying
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. wake — a trail
  24. cell — a phone

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