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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. tear — from crying
  3. charge — in control
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. degree — an amount
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. spell — a short time
  9. charge — a price
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. degree — temperature
  12. tear — to rip
  13. tear — from crying
  14. row — to paddle
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. spell — letters
  19. degree — from a university
  20. charge — electricity
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. spell — magic
  23. bat — the animal
  24. row — a line

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