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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. tear — from crying
  3. staff — employees
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. saw — the tool
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. lie — to recline
  9. staff — a stick
  10. bulb — for light
  11. chest — of your body
  12. wake — a trail
  13. mark — a grade
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bulb — for light
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. mark — a trace
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. staff — employees
  20. tear — to rip
  21. tear — from crying
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. chest — a box
  24. saw — the tool

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