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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 120 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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. shower — rain
  3. rest — a break
  4. stock — goods
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cold — not warm
  7. rush — hurry
  8. wax — to grow
  9. fork — in a road
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. shower — to wash
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. tear — from crying
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. stock — shares
  21. cold — an illness
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. wax — in the ear
  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