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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. march — music
  3. march — the month
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. file — a tool
  6. tear — from crying
  7. file — a document
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. cue — for pool
  10. bear — the animal
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. sharp — clever
  14. cue — a signal
  15. tear — from crying
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. file — a line of people
  19. tear — to rip
  20. march — the month
  21. cue — a hint
  22. stem — to come from
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. coach — a trainer

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