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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. last — finally
  3. spring — of water
  4. track — a song
  5. last — final
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. spring — the season
  8. tear — to rip
  9. track — to keep track
  10. track — a path
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. march — the month
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. spring — a coil
  19. tear — from crying
  20. march — music
  21. stem — to come from
  22. last — to go on
  23. march — the month
  24. temple — a place of worship

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