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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. field — a subject
  3. fall — to drop
  4. swing — to play on
  5. fall — to drop
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. fall — the season
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. band — a music group
  11. swing — in golf
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. tear — to rip
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. band — a ring
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. tear — from crying
  20. swing — music
  21. field — for sport
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. field — farmland

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