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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. lean — thin
  5. charge — in control
  6. fall — the season
  7. charge — a price
  8. key — for a lock
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. fall — to drop
  11. present — the time now
  12. fall — to drop
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. present — there
  15. charge — electricity
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. key — in music
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. lean — to bend
  20. tear — to rip
  21. present — a gift
  22. tear — from crying
  23. key — the most important part
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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