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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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468
Word bank
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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. key — the most important part
  5. tear — from crying
  6. rash — hasty
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. key — in music
  9. degree — an amount
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. spell — magic
  12. degree — from a university
  13. spell — letters
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. rash — a series
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. tear — from crying
  20. degree — temperature
  21. spell — a short time
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. pass — a permit
  24. key — for a lock

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