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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. tear — from crying
  3. mug — a face
  4. drill — the tool
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. last — final
  10. craft — a skill
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. last — to go on
  13. rash — hasty
  14. last — finally
  15. rash — a series
  16. tear — from crying
  17. drill — army training
  18. mug — a cup
  19. wax — to grow
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. drill — a practice
  23. tear — to rip
  24. craft — boats

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