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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. stock — shares
  3. squash — to crush
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. stock — goods
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. object — to protest
  9. net — for catching
  10. net — after costs
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. tear — from crying
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. hand — help
  15. squash — the sport
  16. object — an aim
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. object — a thing
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. pass — a permit
  22. hand — in cards
  23. tear — from crying
  24. net — in sport

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