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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. mine — for digging
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. march — music
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. rock — music
  9. march — the month
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. kick — in football
  13. tear — from crying
  14. rock — a stone
  15. wake — a trail
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. tear — from crying
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. sharp — clever
  21. march — the month
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. tear — to rip
  24. rush — hurry

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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