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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 116 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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. track — to keep track
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. tear — to rip
  5. track — a song
  6. key — in music
  7. mate — a friend
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. fall — the season
  10. fall — to drop
  11. hand — in cards
  12. mate — to breed
  13. hand — help
  14. spring — the season
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. tear — from crying
  17. spring — of water
  18. track — a path
  19. spring — a coil
  20. fall — to drop
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. key — the most important part
  23. key — for a lock
  24. mate — a partner

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