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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 124 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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. tear — from crying
  3. pop — music
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. bark — to shout
  6. ball — a great time
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. ball — a dance
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. pop — to visit
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. chest — of your body
  16. pop — soda
  17. chest — a box
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. chest — of your body
  20. perch — the fish
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. tear — to rip

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