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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. cell — in biology
  4. cold — an illness
  5. tear — from crying
  6. court — for sport
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. press — to push
  10. ground — crushed
  11. court — of a king
  12. ground — a position
  13. cold — not warm
  14. suit — to fit
  15. court — of law
  16. suit — clothes
  17. suit — in cards
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. press — a publisher
  20. dip — to sink
  21. press — newspapers
  22. ground — the earth
  23. cell — a phone
  24. tear — from crying

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