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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. row — to paddle
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. tear — from crying
  8. net — in sport
  9. deal — to handle
  10. net — for catching
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. row — a line
  13. net — after costs
  14. tear — from crying
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. chest — of your body
  18. saw — the tool
  19. saw — the tool
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. chest — a box
  23. chest — of your body
  24. lash — an eyelash

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