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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  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. mine — for digging
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. cap — a hat
  4. fine — all right
  5. drill — a practice
  6. tear — from crying
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. drill — army training
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. cap — a lid
  16. drill — the tool
  17. cap — of ice
  18. mark — a trace
  19. dip — to sink
  20. kick — in football
  21. mark — a grade
  22. fine — high quality
  23. tear — from crying
  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