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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. mug — a face
  3. mug — to rob
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. bear — the animal
  6. mug — a cup
  7. tear — from crying
  8. tear — from crying
  9. cell — in biology
  10. bound — certain
  11. snap — to click
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. cell — a phone
  15. bound — obliged
  16. can — a tin
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. pit — in a race
  20. can — a tin
  21. can — to be able to
  22. bound — tied together
  23. bear — the animal
  24. pit — a hole

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