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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — from crying
  4. object — to protest
  5. rash — hasty
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. present — there
  8. rule — a law
  9. drill — army training
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. roll — a list
  12. tear — to rip
  13. rule — government
  14. plane — a tool
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. roll — a cake
  18. drill — the tool
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. object — a thing
  21. rash — a series
  22. object — an aim
  23. present — the time now
  24. drill — a practice

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