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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. tear — from crying
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. land — ground
  8. tear — to rip
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. key — in music
  11. key — for a lock
  12. hand — in cards
  13. pass — a permit
  14. hand — help
  15. land — to come down
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. key — the most important part
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. land — a country
  21. snap — to click
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. lie — to recline

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