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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. wind — moving air
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. rule — a law
  6. tear — from crying
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. tear — from crying
  11. wind — moving air
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. fall — to drop
  14. march — the month
  15. march — the month
  16. fall — the season
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. season — in sport
  19. fall — to drop
  20. season — of the year
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. rule — government
  24. march — music

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