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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. tear — to rip
  3. tear — from crying
  4. swing — music
  5. object — to protest
  6. bass — low music
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. object — a thing
  10. march — music
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. swing — in golf
  13. march — the month
  14. bass — the fish
  15. march — the month
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. object — an aim
  19. tear — from crying
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. chair — a leader
  22. swing — to play on
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. fork — a garden tool

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