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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  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. ground — the earth
  3. cap — of ice
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. bat — the animal
  6. row — a line
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. ground — a position
  9. cap — a hat
  10. cap — a lid
  11. bank — for money
  12. degree — temperature
  13. can — a tin
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. can — to be able to
  16. tear — from crying
  17. row — to paddle
  18. degree — an amount
  19. bank — for money
  20. bank — of a river
  21. ground — crushed
  22. can — a tin
  23. degree — from a university
  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