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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. tear — from crying
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. scale — in music
  5. tear — to rip
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. scale — size or range
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. root — of a plant
  13. root — of a word
  14. tube — a container
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. tube — the underground
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. root — the cause
  20. pitch — completely
  21. rock — a stone
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. tear — from crying

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