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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 120 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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. spell — a short time
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. mate — to breed
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. tear — from crying
  9. drill — army training
  10. mate — a friend
  11. tear — from crying
  12. drill — a practice
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. swing — music
  15. swing — in golf
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. drill — the tool
  18. plane — a tool
  19. spell — magic
  20. mate — a partner
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. swing — to play on
  23. spell — letters
  24. kick — in football

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