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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. stem — to come from
  6. cap — a lid
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. cap — of ice
  9. tear — from crying
  10. saw — the tool
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. cap — a hat
  13. deal — to handle
  14. tear — to rip
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. pit — a hole
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. saw — the tool
  23. pit — in a race
  24. hide — animal skin

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