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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. tear — from crying
  4. kid — to tease
  5. board — to get on
  6. board — a committee
  7. sharp — clever
  8. cell — a phone
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. tear — from crying
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. bass — the fish
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. bass — low music
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. kid — child
  23. cell — in biology
  24. safe — out of danger

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