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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. object — an aim
  3. face — to confront
  4. object — to protest
  5. face — to point toward
  6. drill — a practice
  7. face — part of the head
  8. last — final
  9. clip — to cut
  10. tear — from crying
  11. lean — to bend
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. mark — a grade
  14. drill — army training
  15. tear — to rip
  16. tear — from crying
  17. drill — the tool
  18. object — a thing
  19. clip — a video
  20. mark — a trace
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. lean — thin
  23. last — finally
  24. clip — for paper

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