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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — to rip
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. tear — from crying
  9. cell — in biology
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. wake — a trail
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. capital — a city
  17. perch — the fish
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. capital — money
  20. tube — the underground
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. cell — a phone
  23. tube — a container
  24. calf — a young animal

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