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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. When was this ________________ built?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. tear — to rip
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. prune — to trim
  7. race — humankind
  8. rule — a law
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. track — a path
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. prune — to trim
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. race — a contest
  15. race — the arms race
  16. current — electric
  17. rule — government
  18. track — to keep track
  19. track — a song
  20. current — of water
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. tear — from crying
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. current — happening now

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