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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 116 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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. squash — the sport
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. lean — thin
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. dip — to sink
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. tear — to rip
  12. march — the month
  13. tear — from crying
  14. lean — to bend
  15. bat — the animal
  16. march — the month
  17. tear — from crying
  18. march — music
  19. rush — hurry
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. squash — to crush
  24. hide — animal skin

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