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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. squash — the sport
  4. file — a tool
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. net — in sport
  7. shower — rain
  8. key — the most important part
  9. file — a document
  10. key — for a lock
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. net — for catching
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. shower — to wash
  16. squash — to crush
  17. key — in music
  18. sharp — clever
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. tear — to rip
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. file — a line of people
  23. net — after costs
  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