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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. tear — from crying
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. kid — child
  7. wind — moving air
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. tear — to rip
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. cap — of ice
  12. rule — government
  13. rule — a law
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. cap — a lid
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. mine — for digging
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. cap — a hat
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. tear — from crying
  24. kid — to tease

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