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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 124 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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. tear — to rip
  4. bank — for money
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — to trim
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. rush — hurry
  14. tube — the underground
  15. bank — for money
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tube — a container
  20. swing — music
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. swing — to play on
  24. bank — of a river

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