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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. tear — to rip
  5. lie — to recline
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. tear — from crying
  11. tear — from crying
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. saw — the tool
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. cold — not warm
  16. rash — a series
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. dip — to sink
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. bat — the animal
  21. rash — hasty
  22. cold — an illness
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. lie — an untruth

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