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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. fork — in a road
  3. tear — to rip
  4. spring — a coil
  5. foot — a measure
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. band — a music group
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. spring — the season
  10. can — to be able to
  11. spring — of water
  12. mug — to rob
  13. band — a ring
  14. mug — a cup
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. tear — from crying
  19. can — a tin
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. can — a tin
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. tear — from crying

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