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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. tear — to rip
  3. tear — from crying
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. present — there
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. mate — a friend
  8. present — a gift
  9. dip — to sink
  10. mate — a partner
  11. bat — the animal
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. present — the time now
  16. wake — a trail
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. lie — to recline
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. tear — from crying
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. lie — an untruth

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