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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. object — to protest
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bound — tied together
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. shower — to wash
  10. shower — rain
  11. band — a music group
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. stand — to bear
  14. band — a ring
  15. bound — obliged
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. object — an aim
  18. object — a thing
  19. tear — from crying
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. bound — certain
  22. tear — from crying
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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