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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 116 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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. hand — in cards
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. hand — help
  6. present — the time now
  7. present — a gift
  8. tear — from crying
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. mine — for digging
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. squash — to crush
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. tear — to rip
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. wax — to grow
  20. bat — the animal
  21. present — there
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. squash — the sport

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