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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. pit — a hole
  4. squash — to crush
  5. capital — money
  6. pit — in a race
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. lean — thin
  9. tear — from crying
  10. degree — an amount
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. degree — temperature
  13. capital — a city
  14. current — of water
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. current — electric
  17. deal — to handle
  18. squash — the sport
  19. degree — from a university
  20. lean — to bend
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. current — happening now
  23. squash — the vegetable
  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