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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. spring — of water
  4. squash — to crush
  5. tear — from crying
  6. squash — the sport
  7. spring — the season
  8. stock — shares
  9. race — the arms race
  10. swing — to play on
  11. race — humankind
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. race — a contest
  14. tear — from crying
  15. swing — in golf
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. spring — a coil
  20. board — a committee
  21. stock — goods
  22. board — to get on
  23. swing — music
  24. cabinet — ministers

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