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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 120 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
468
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: tear · pitcher · straw · scale · lash · pop · hide · foot

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. foot — a measure
  3. tear — to rip
  4. pop — to visit
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. scale — in music
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. pop — soda
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. scale — size or range
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. pop — music
  24. straw — a straw man

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