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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. chair — a leader
  4. cold — an illness
  5. rock — music
  6. deal — to handle
  7. pop — to visit
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. pop — music
  11. tear — to rip
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. cold — not warm
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. tear — from crying
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. pop — soda
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. rock — a stone
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. rock — to move gently

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