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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. can — a tin
  4. tear — from crying
  5. march — music
  6. press — a publisher
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. march — the month
  9. can — a tin
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. can — to be able to
  12. lean — thin
  13. lean — to bend
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. tear — to rip
  17. chest — a box
  18. press — newspapers
  19. tear — from crying
  20. wound — an injury
  21. press — to push
  22. march — the month
  23. chest — of your body
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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