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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. tear — from crying
  3. staff — a stick
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. sharp — clever
  8. staff — employees
  9. tear — to rip
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. pitch — completely
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. scale — size or range
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. tear — from crying
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. scale — in music
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. staff — employees
  23. stem — to come from
  24. bat — for baseball

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