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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. tear — to rip
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. field — farmland
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. shower — rain
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. present — there
  9. file — a tool
  10. file — a document
  11. drill — the tool
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. drill — army training
  14. shower — to wash
  15. present — a gift
  16. tear — from crying
  17. field — for sport
  18. tear — from crying
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. pit — a hole
  21. pit — in a race
  22. field — a subject
  23. file — a line of people
  24. drill — a practice

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