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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 116 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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. tear — from crying
  3. rash — a series
  4. club — for dancing
  5. club — for golf
  6. bound — tied together
  7. tear — from crying
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. tear — to rip
  10. object — to protest
  11. rash — hasty
  12. bound — obliged
  13. sharp — clever
  14. march — the month
  15. mark — a grade
  16. march — music
  17. object — a thing
  18. march — the month
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. object — an aim
  21. mark — a trace
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. club — a group
  24. bound — certain

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