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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. craft — a skill
  3. tear — from crying
  4. cold — not warm
  5. tear — to rip
  6. track — a path
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. cold — an illness
  9. cue — for pool
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. tear — from crying
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. track — a song
  17. stem — to come from
  18. craft — boats
  19. cue — a signal
  20. track — to keep track
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. fan — a supporter

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