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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. fall — the season
  3. hand — help
  4. hand — in cards
  5. present — a gift
  6. present — there
  7. club — for dancing
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. tear — from crying
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fall — to drop
  13. tube — the underground
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. shower — to wash
  16. tear — from crying
  17. club — a group
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. shower — rain
  20. tear — to rip
  21. tube — a container
  22. club — for golf
  23. foot — a measure
  24. present — the time now

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