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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 124 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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. field — farmland
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. cell — in biology
  9. tear — to rip
  10. cell — a phone
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. field — a subject
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. tear — from crying
  17. ball — a dance
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. field — for sport
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. ball — a great time

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