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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. rock — music
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. tear — from crying
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bore — to tire
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. chest — of your body
  9. rash — a series
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. saw — the tool
  12. wound — an injury
  13. rash — hasty
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. tear — from crying
  16. rock — a stone
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. bore — to drill
  20. saw — the tool
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. chest — a box
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. wound — an injury

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