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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. tear — from crying
  3. rash — hasty
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. cue — a hint
  6. track — a song
  7. tear — to rip
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. branch — a division
  10. bulb — for light
  11. track — to keep track
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. row — to paddle
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. cue — for pool
  16. row — a line
  17. rash — a series
  18. bulb — for light
  19. cue — a signal
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. saw — the tool
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. track — a path
  24. tear — from crying

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