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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. scale — size or range
  3. tear — to rip
  4. cold — not warm
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. shower — to wash
  10. cell — in biology
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. scale — in music
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. shower — rain
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. deal — to handle
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. tear — from crying
  22. cell — a phone
  23. tear — from crying
  24. cold — an illness

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