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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. tube — a container
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. tear — to rip
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. tube — the underground
  8. cold — not warm
  9. tear — from crying
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. object — to protest
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. fork — in a road
  14. craft — a skill
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. craft — boats
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. object — an aim
  24. object — a thing

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