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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. face — part of the head
  3. tear — from crying
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. object — to protest
  7. march — music
  8. dip — to sink
  9. object — a thing
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. march — the month
  12. object — an aim
  13. march — the month
  14. face — to point toward
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. field — farmland
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. face — to confront
  20. tear — from crying
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. tear — to rip
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — a subject

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