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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. tear — from crying
  4. shower — to wash
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — to rip
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. pit — in a race
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. degree — an amount
  13. degree — temperature
  14. degree — from a university
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. shower — rain
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. pit — a hole
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. bat — the animal

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