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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. shower — to wash
  4. tear — to rip
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. season — in sport
  10. stem — to come from
  11. mine — for digging
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. tear — from crying
  15. shower — rain
  16. tear — from crying
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. tube — a container
  19. season — of the year
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. tube — the underground

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