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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. dip — to sink
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. club — for golf
  5. tear — to rip
  6. club — for dancing
  7. pit — a hole
  8. club — a group
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. fall — the season
  11. can — a tin
  12. bark — to shout
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. can — to be able to
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. tear — from crying
  18. shower — rain
  19. tear — from crying
  20. can — a tin
  21. fall — to drop
  22. pit — in a race
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. shower — to wash

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