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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. tear — from crying
  3. fall — the season
  4. tear — from crying
  5. can — to be able to
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. last — to go on
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. tear — to rip
  10. shower — rain
  11. shower — to wash
  12. craft — a skill
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — to drop
  15. last — finally
  16. last — final
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. craft — boats
  20. can — a tin
  21. can — a tin
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. coach — a trainer

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