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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. lean — to bend
  3. rest — what's left
  4. drill — the tool
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. drill — army training
  7. lean — thin
  8. plane — a tool
  9. bat — the animal
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. tear — from crying
  12. dip — to sink
  13. rest — what's left
  14. tear — to rip
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. wound — an injury
  18. rest — a break
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. tear — from crying
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. bat — for baseball
  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