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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. tear — to rip
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. firm — steady
  7. stem — to come from
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tear — from crying
  13. fall — to drop
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. dip — to sink
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. fall — the season
  20. bass — the fish
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. bass — low music
  23. firm — a company
  24. fall — to drop

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