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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. tear — from crying
  3. capital — a city
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. shower — rain
  6. court — for sport
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. press — to push
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. court — of a king
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. press — a publisher
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. shower — to wash
  19. tear — from crying
  20. capital — money
  21. press — newspapers
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. tear — to rip
  24. court — of law

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