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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. bore — to tire
  3. charge — in control
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. charge — a price
  6. march — the month
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. march — music
  10. charge — electricity
  11. cold — an illness
  12. tear — from crying
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. prune — to trim
  16. tear — to rip
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. prune — to trim
  20. tear — from crying
  21. cold — not warm
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. bore — to drill
  24. march — the month

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