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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. tear — from crying
  3. swing — to play on
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. wound — an injury
  6. prune — to trim
  7. wound — an injury
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. swing — in golf
  12. race — the arms race
  13. face — part of the head
  14. face — to point toward
  15. tear — from crying
  16. sharp — clever
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. rush — hurry
  19. face — to confront
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. swing — music
  22. tear — to rip
  23. prune — to trim
  24. race — humankind

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