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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. prune — to trim
  3. tear — to rip
  4. prune — to trim
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. spell — letters
  10. file — a tool
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. spell — magic
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. mate — a partner
  15. mate — a friend
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. spell — a short time
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. tear — from crying
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. file — a document
  22. file — a line of people
  23. mate — to breed
  24. lie — to recline

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