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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. tear — from crying
  3. current — electric
  4. deal — to handle
  5. degree — temperature
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. current — happening now
  9. tear — to rip
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. degree — from a university
  13. club — for golf
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. club — for dancing
  16. stand — to bear
  17. clip — to cut
  18. current — of water
  19. degree — an amount
  20. clip — for paper
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. club — a group
  23. clip — a video
  24. stand — on your feet

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