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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 lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. tear — from crying
  3. roll — a cake
  4. prune — to trim
  5. tear — from crying
  6. chest — of your body
  7. game — wild animals
  8. current — electric
  9. current — happening now
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. key — in music
  13. roll — a list
  14. tear — to rip
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. key — for a lock
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. game — a match
  21. prune — to trim
  22. chest — of your body
  23. current — of water
  24. key — the most important part

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