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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: lie · sharp · rock · shower · tear · chest · bear · spell

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  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. rock — to move gently
  2. rock — music
  3. chest — of your body
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. spell — a short time
  6. chest — of your body
  7. bear — the animal
  8. shower — to wash
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. sharp — clever
  11. spell — magic
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. spell — letters
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. shower — rain
  16. tear — from crying
  17. lie — to recline
  18. rock — a stone
  19. chest — a box
  20. bear — the animal
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. tear — to rip
  23. lie — an untruth
  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