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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — to rip
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. shower — to wash
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. squash — the sport
  10. game — wild animals
  11. shower — rain
  12. tear — from crying
  13. squash — to crush
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. pass — a permit
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. game — a match
  19. wind — moving air
  20. fork — in a road
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. pass — to succeed

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