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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. shower — rain
  4. spring — of water
  5. band — a music group
  6. foot — a measure
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. rash — hasty
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. spring — the season
  15. shower — to wash
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. rash — a series
  19. tear — to rip
  20. band — a ring
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. tear — from crying
  24. spring — a coil

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