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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. pitch — completely
  3. tear — from crying
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. cold — not warm
  7. chip — for betting
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. mark — a grade
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. fall — the season
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. cold — an illness
  14. bark — to shout
  15. tear — from crying
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. fall — to drop
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. mark — a trace
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. fall — to drop
  23. chip — to eat
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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