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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. tear — from crying
  3. spell — letters
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. saw — the tool
  6. current — happening now
  7. tear — from crying
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. cap — of ice
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. dip — to sink
  12. tear — to rip
  13. cap — a hat
  14. spell — a short time
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. saw — the tool
  18. march — music
  19. cap — a lid
  20. current — electric
  21. spell — magic
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. march — the month
  24. current — of water

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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