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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. lean — to bend
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. clip — a video
  9. shower — rain
  10. ball — a dance
  11. lean — thin
  12. ball — a great time
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. cap — of ice
  16. clip — to cut
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. tear — from crying
  19. shower — to wash
  20. cap — a hat
  21. cap — a lid
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. clip — for paper
  24. tear — from crying

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