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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's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. tear — from crying
  3. cold — an illness
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. rash — a series
  7. cold — not warm
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. dip — to sink
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. tear — to rip
  13. rash — hasty
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. tear — from crying
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. bark — to shout
  21. season — in sport
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. season — of the year

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