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

Word bank: mark · lie · bulb · firm · tear · net · pound · cold

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. lie — to recline
  3. firm — steady
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bulb — for light
  8. net — in sport
  9. cold — an illness
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. cold — not warm
  12. firm — a company
  13. mark — a trace
  14. bulb — for light
  15. tear — to rip
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. net — after costs
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. firm — decided
  21. pound — a weight
  22. net — for catching
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. mark — a grade

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