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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. field — a subject
  3. court — of a king
  4. tear — to rip
  5. object — a thing
  6. object — an aim
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. field — for sport
  10. object — to protest
  11. tear — from crying
  12. chest — of your body
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. staff — employees
  15. chest — of your body
  16. court — for sport
  17. court — of law
  18. field — farmland
  19. chest — a box
  20. scale — size or range
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. scale — in music
  23. staff — employees
  24. staff — a stick

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