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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. land — to come down
  3. land — a country
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. present — the time now
  6. tear — to rip
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. cell — a phone
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. present — there
  11. tear — from crying
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. present — a gift
  15. band — a music group
  16. rush — hurry
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. land — ground
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. band — a ring
  23. cell — in biology
  24. nail — for a hammer

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