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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. swing — music
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. net — in sport
  12. net — after costs
  13. swing — in golf
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. kid — child
  16. swing — to play on
  17. tear — from crying
  18. stock — shares
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. net — for catching
  22. stock — goods
  23. tear — from crying
  24. kid — to tease

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