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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 116 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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. tear — from crying
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. march — the month
  5. sharp — clever
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. track — a song
  8. track — to keep track
  9. track — a path
  10. fall — to drop
  11. march — the month
  12. mate — to breed
  13. fall — the season
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. march — music
  16. tear — to rip
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. mate — a partner
  19. shower — rain
  20. shower — to wash
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. tear — from crying
  24. mate — a friend

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