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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 120 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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. tear — from crying
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. board — a committee
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. board — to get on
  8. degree — from a university
  9. wax — to grow
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. degree — temperature
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. degree — an amount
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. tear — from crying

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