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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. row — to paddle
  3. mate — a partner
  4. tear — from crying
  5. rush — hurry
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. object — to protest
  12. mate — a friend
  13. field — for sport
  14. tube — the underground
  15. field — farmland
  16. object — an aim
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. mate — to breed
  19. object — a thing
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. tube — a container
  22. row — a line
  23. field — a subject
  24. tear — from crying

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