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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. band — a music group
  3. fall — to drop
  4. can — a tin
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. lie — to recline
  7. tear — from crying
  8. can — to be able to
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. fall — to drop
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. band — a ring
  15. scale — size or range
  16. tear — to rip
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. scale — in music
  19. can — a tin
  20. fall — the season
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. tear — from crying
  24. lie — an untruth

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