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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. prune — to trim
  3. tear — to rip
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — a tin
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. wound — an injury
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. tear — from crying
  11. wound — an injury
  12. season — in sport
  13. lean — thin
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. tear — from crying
  16. prune — to trim
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. drill — a practice
  19. drill — army training
  20. season — of the year
  21. lean — to bend
  22. can — to be able to
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. drill — the tool

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