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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 120 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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — to rip
  4. key — the most important part
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. band — a ring
  7. object — a thing
  8. key — in music
  9. key — for a lock
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. kid — child
  12. lean — thin
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. rule — government
  15. band — a music group
  16. lean — to bend
  17. spring — of water
  18. object — to protest
  19. rule — a law
  20. kid — to tease
  21. spring — a coil
  22. object — an aim
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. spring — the season

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