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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. tear — from crying
  3. cell — a phone
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. key — the most important part
  6. key — for a lock
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. chip — to eat
  9. tear — from crying
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. face — part of the head
  12. suit — clothes
  13. cell — in biology
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. suit — in cards
  16. face — to point toward
  17. face — to confront
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. chair — a leader
  20. chip — for betting
  21. dip — to sink
  22. key — in music
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. suit — to fit

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