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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. craft — boats
  6. spring — the season
  7. tear — from crying
  8. degree — from a university
  9. spring — of water
  10. tear — from crying
  11. degree — an amount
  12. wound — an injury
  13. face — to point toward
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. face — to confront
  16. face — part of the head
  17. degree — temperature
  18. stand — to bear
  19. wound — an injury
  20. craft — a skill
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. bulb — for light
  24. spring — a coil

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