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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. perch — the fish
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. object — a thing
  8. object — to protest
  9. shower — to wash
  10. object — an aim
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. tear — from crying
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. cell — a phone
  16. can — a tin
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. tear — from crying
  19. scale — in music
  20. can — to be able to
  21. shower — rain
  22. can — a tin
  23. cell — in biology
  24. scale — size or range

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