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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 120 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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. bear — the animal
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — from crying
  5. hand — in cards
  6. file — a tool
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. mug — a face
  9. bat — the animal
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. mug — a cup
  12. bass — low music
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. tear — to rip
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. file — a document
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. hand — help
  23. bass — the fish
  24. file — a line of people

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