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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. mark — a trace
  3. branch — a division
  4. last — finally
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — final
  7. tear — from crying
  8. march — music
  9. root — of a plant
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. root — of a word
  13. tear — from crying
  14. mark — a grade
  15. kid — to tease
  16. march — the month
  17. kid — child
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. march — the month
  20. root — the cause
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. vault — a safe
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. branch — of a bank

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