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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 speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. wake — a trail
  3. mate — to breed
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. bat — the animal
  6. cue — for pool
  7. tear — from crying
  8. ground — the earth
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. fork — in a road
  13. branch — a division
  14. cue — a hint
  15. mate — a friend
  16. ground — crushed
  17. mate — a partner
  18. cue — a signal
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. tear — from crying
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. ground — a position

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