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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. tear — from crying
  4. drill — the tool
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. cap — a lid
  7. tear — to rip
  8. mark — a grade
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. drill — a practice
  13. drill — army training
  14. date — the fruit
  15. cell — a phone
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. mark — a trace
  20. cap — a hat
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. tear — from crying
  23. cell — in biology
  24. bark — to shout

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