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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. The water is too ________________.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. cold — not warm
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. march — the month
  5. stand — to bear
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. fall — to drop
  8. march — music
  9. tear — from crying
  10. lean — to bend
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. fall — the season
  14. lean — thin
  15. cold — an illness
  16. march — the month
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. shower — to wash
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. tear — to rip
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. shower — rain
  24. fall — to drop

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