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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. tear — from crying
  5. face — to point toward
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. spell — a short time
  8. face — to confront
  9. shower — to wash
  10. wound — an injury
  11. tear — from crying
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. tear — to rip
  14. firm — a company
  15. face — part of the head
  16. shower — rain
  17. spell — magic
  18. bore — to tire
  19. bore — to drill
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. prune — to trim
  22. spell — letters
  23. firm — steady
  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