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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 120 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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  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. tear — from crying
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. stand — to bear
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. field — for sport
  14. field — farmland
  15. lie — to recline
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. bat — the animal
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. field — a subject
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. bat — for baseball
  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