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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. perch — the fish
  3. bore — to drill
  4. tear — from crying
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. capital — a city
  8. stand — to bear
  9. spell — magic
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. last — finally
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. tear — to rip
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. last — final
  16. spell — letters
  17. season — in sport
  18. bore — to tire
  19. capital — money
  20. spell — a short time
  21. season — of the year
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. last — to go on
  24. stand — for spectators

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