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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. last — final
  3. tear — from crying
  4. chair — a leader
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. spring — a coil
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. tear — from crying
  11. tear — to rip
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. lean — to bend
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. last — to go on
  20. last — finally
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. spring — the season
  23. lean — thin
  24. spring — of water

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