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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. staff — a stick
  3. wound — an injury
  4. rash — hasty
  5. cold — an illness
  6. cold — not warm
  7. wound — an injury
  8. rash — a series
  9. staff — employees
  10. lie — to recline
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — from crying
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. rush — hurry
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. pitch — completely
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. staff — employees
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. tear — to rip

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