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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. squash — the sport
  4. tear — to rip
  5. bound — certain
  6. bound — tied together
  7. key — for a lock
  8. squash — to crush
  9. lie — to recline
  10. pop — music
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. bound — obliged
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. tear — from crying
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. key — in music
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. key — the most important part
  21. tear — from crying
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. pop — to visit

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