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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. march — the month
  3. ground — a position
  4. race — a contest
  5. scale — in music
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. tear — from crying
  8. race — the arms race
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. scale — size or range
  12. race — humankind
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. march — the month
  15. ground — the earth
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. ground — crushed
  18. rash — hasty
  19. tear — from crying
  20. bear — the animal
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. bear — the animal
  23. tear — to rip
  24. march — music

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