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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. rest — what's left
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. kick — in football
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. tear — from crying
  9. kid — child
  10. rest — a break
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. tear — from crying
  15. hand — help
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. hand — in cards
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. kid — to tease
  20. rest — what's left
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. game — a match
  23. game — wild animals
  24. stand — to bear

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