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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 116 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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. can — to be able to
  3. mug — a face
  4. tear — from crying
  5. club — for dancing
  6. present — a gift
  7. present — the time now
  8. club — a group
  9. squash — to crush
  10. face — to confront
  11. club — for golf
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. mug — a cup
  16. face — to point toward
  17. lie — to recline
  18. tear — to rip
  19. mug — to rob
  20. squash — the sport
  21. tear — from crying
  22. face — part of the head
  23. can — a tin
  24. can — a tin

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