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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. tear — from crying
  3. perch — the fish
  4. fall — to drop
  5. spell — magic
  6. hand — help
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. board — to get on
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. fall — the season
  14. fall — to drop
  15. board — a committee
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. mine — for digging
  20. spell — letters
  21. spell — a short time
  22. hand — in cards
  23. tear — from crying
  24. tear — to rip

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