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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. tear — from crying
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. stem — to come from
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. tube — the underground
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. scale — in music
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bat — the animal
  16. tear — to rip
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. perch — the fish
  19. tear — from crying
  20. scale — size or range
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. tube — a container
  24. stem — of a plant

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