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

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. tear — from crying
  3. kick — in football
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. tear — from crying
  8. band — a music group
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. march — the month
  11. march — music
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. chair — a leader
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. tear — to rip
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. band — a ring

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