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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. cap — a hat
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. file — a line of people
  5. bank — for money
  6. object — to protest
  7. object — a thing
  8. object — an aim
  9. wound — an injury
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. wound — an injury
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. tear — to rip
  15. cap — of ice
  16. cap — a lid
  17. file — a tool
  18. tear — from crying
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. bank — of a river
  21. bank — for money
  22. file — a document
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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