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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bore — to tire
  3. last — final
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. mate — a partner
  6. last — finally
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. sharp — clever
  9. bore — to drill
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. chair — a leader
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. scale — size or range
  16. scale — in music
  17. mate — to breed
  18. last — to go on
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. tear — from crying
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. tear — to rip
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. mate — a friend

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