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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. tear — from crying
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. tear — to rip
  6. prune — to trim
  7. mate — a friend
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. prune — to trim
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. kid — child
  14. mate — to breed
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. kick — in football
  20. tear — from crying
  21. wind — moving air
  22. kid — to tease
  23. mate — a partner
  24. prune — the fruit

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