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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. toast — bread
  3. drill — army training
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. field — a subject
  7. cue — a signal
  8. drill — a practice
  9. fork — in a road
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. tear — to rip
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. field — farmland
  16. cue — a hint
  17. field — for sport
  18. tear — from crying
  19. wake — a trail
  20. lie — to recline
  21. drill — the tool
  22. cue — for pool
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. wake — before a funeral

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