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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. fall — the season
  3. lean — to bend
  4. tear — from crying
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. tear — from crying
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. current — electric
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. tear — to rip
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. hand — help
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. row — to paddle
  17. current — of water
  18. current — happening now
  19. fall — to drop
  20. wound — an injury
  21. hand — in cards
  22. fall — to drop
  23. lean — thin
  24. wound — an injury

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