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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 is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. tear — from crying
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. rest — a break
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. rest — what's left
  9. lean — to bend
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. shower — to wash
  12. craft — a skill
  13. rest — what's left
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. wind — moving air
  16. craft — boats
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. shower — rain
  20. perch — the fish
  21. tear — to rip
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. tear — from crying
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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