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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. tube — a container
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. tube — the underground
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. root — of a word
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. court — of a king
  10. cold — an illness
  11. court — for sport
  12. cold — not warm
  13. root — of a plant
  14. root — the cause
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. tear — from crying
  21. court — of law
  22. tear — to rip
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. lie — to recline

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