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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. rash — a series
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. wound — an injury
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. bark — to shout
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. branch — a division
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. chip — to eat
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. wound — an injury
  22. rash — hasty
  23. tear — from crying
  24. chip — for betting

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