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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. sharp — clever
  3. mate — a friend
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. mate — a partner
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. ball — a great time
  8. ball — a dance
  9. tear — from crying
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. mark — a grade
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. mate — to breed
  15. hand — help
  16. mark — a trace
  17. hand — in cards
  18. cell — in biology
  19. tear — from crying
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. cell — a phone
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. hand — part of the body

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