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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. pop — soda
  3. fall — the season
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. bulb — for light
  6. rest — what's left
  7. fall — to drop
  8. capital — a city
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. pop — music
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. cold — an illness
  13. capital — money
  14. tear — from crying
  15. rest — a break
  16. pop — to visit
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. rest — what's left
  20. date — the fruit
  21. fall — to drop
  22. cold — not warm
  23. tear — from crying
  24. bulb — for light

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