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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. chest — a box
  3. court — of a king
  4. saw — the tool
  5. court — for sport
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wake — a trail
  8. chest — of your body
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. tear — from crying
  11. saw — the tool
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. march — the month
  14. tear — to rip
  15. race — the arms race
  16. suit — in cards
  17. race — a contest
  18. court — of law
  19. chest — of your body
  20. march — music
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. suit — clothes
  23. march — the month
  24. race — humankind

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