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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 was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. lean — to bend
  3. tear — to rip
  4. tear — from crying
  5. ground — the earth
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. ground — crushed
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. present — the time now
  11. date — the fruit
  12. wind — moving air
  13. mug — to rob
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. lean — thin
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. present — a gift
  18. present — there
  19. mug — a face
  20. tear — from crying
  21. ground — a position
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. mug — a cup

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