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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. lean — to bend
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. object — an aim
  6. tear — from crying
  7. degree — an amount
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. wind — moving air
  13. object — to protest
  14. wind — moving air
  15. degree — from a university
  16. degree — temperature
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. tear — from crying
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. lean — thin
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. object — a thing

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