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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. pit — in a race
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. tear — to rip
  5. tear — from crying
  6. land — to come down
  7. spell — magic
  8. land — ground
  9. wound — an injury
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. lean — to bend
  12. spell — letters
  13. land — a country
  14. perch — the fish
  15. swing — music
  16. swing — in golf
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. swing — to play on
  20. pit — a hole
  21. wound — an injury
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. tear — from crying
  24. lean — thin

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