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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. tear — to rip
  3. key — the most important part
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. pop — soda
  6. saw — the tool
  7. tear — from crying
  8. key — for a lock
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. perch — the fish
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. net — in sport
  13. chip — to eat
  14. net — after costs
  15. saw — the tool
  16. net — for catching
  17. pop — music
  18. rest — what's left
  19. key — in music
  20. pop — to visit
  21. rest — a break
  22. rest — what's left
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. chip — for betting

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