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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. perch — the fish
  6. bore — to tire
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. field — farmland
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. tear — from crying
  12. field — a subject
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. field — for sport
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. fork — in a road
  21. bore — to drill
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. tear — to rip
  24. straw — a straw man

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