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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. hand — help
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. tear — from crying
  9. bound — certain
  10. bass — low music
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bass — the fish
  13. bound — tied together
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. wound — an injury
  17. tear — from crying
  18. hand — in cards
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. bound — obliged
  23. pass — a permit
  24. tear — to rip

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