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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. rash — a series
  3. wind — moving air
  4. saw — the tool
  5. rash — hasty
  6. bat — the animal
  7. last — to go on
  8. last — finally
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. last — final
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. tear — from crying
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. wind — moving air
  15. tear — from crying
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. stem — to come from
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. tear — to rip
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. saw — the tool
  24. stem — of a plant

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