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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. dip — to sink
  3. drill — army training
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. tear — to rip
  7. cue — a hint
  8. tear — from crying
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. cue — a signal
  11. drill — the tool
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. tear — from crying
  14. bat — the animal
  15. cue — for pool
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. drill — a practice
  19. rock — a stone
  20. rash — hasty
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. rash — a series

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