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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  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. tear — from crying
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. pit — a hole
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. tear — to rip
  6. can — to be able to
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. spell — a short time
  9. drill — a practice
  10. drill — the tool
  11. can — a tin
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. spell — magic
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. tear — from crying
  16. snap — to click
  17. spell — letters
  18. drill — army training
  19. can — a tin
  20. pit — in a race
  21. hand — help
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. hand — in cards
  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