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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. cold — not warm
  3. root — the cause
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. tear — from crying
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. lie — to recline
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. bear — the animal
  11. root — of a word
  12. root — of a plant
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. perch — the fish
  15. bear — the animal
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. stand — to bear
  18. pitch — completely
  19. tear — to rip
  20. cold — an illness
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. bear — to put up with

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