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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. tear — from crying
  3. row — to paddle
  4. ball — a great time
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. bat — the animal
  8. saw — the tool
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. tear — from crying
  11. firm — decided
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. tear — to rip
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. bass — low music
  20. row — a line
  21. bass — the fish
  22. firm — a company
  23. saw — the tool
  24. ball — a dance

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