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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: foot · kid · rest · dip · craft · leaves · hand · tear

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. craft — boats
  3. hand — in cards
  4. rest — what's left
  5. craft — a skill
  6. kid — to tease
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. tear — from crying
  9. rest — a break
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. tear — to rip
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. rest — what's left
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. foot — a measure
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. kid — child
  19. hand — help
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. dip — to sink

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