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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. tear — from crying
  3. fall — the season
  4. mug — a cup
  5. fall — to drop
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. tear — to rip
  8. squash — the sport
  9. dip — to sink
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. fall — to drop
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. tear — from crying
  14. shower — to wash
  15. squash — to crush
  16. season — of the year
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. kick — in football
  19. mug — to rob
  20. mug — a face
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. shower — rain
  24. season — in sport

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