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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: ruler · club · jam · hide · tear · foot · fall · fine

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. tear — to rip
  5. fall — the season
  6. club — for dancing
  7. fine — all right
  8. fine — high quality
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. tear — from crying
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. foot — a measure
  14. fall — to drop
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. tear — from crying
  17. club — for golf
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. fall — to drop
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. club — a group
  24. hide — animal skin

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