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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. mate — a partner
  3. tear — to rip
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. tear — from crying
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. mate — to breed
  10. wind — moving air
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. wind — moving air
  13. tear — from crying
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. race — humankind
  18. race — the arms race
  19. mate — a friend
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. perch — the fish
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. race — a contest
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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