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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. tear — from crying
  4. rash — hasty
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. march — the month
  8. ball — a dance
  9. march — the month
  10. prune — to trim
  11. mate — to breed
  12. mate — a partner
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. wound — an injury
  15. rash — a series
  16. prune — to trim
  17. march — music
  18. ball — a great time
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. tear — to rip
  21. stock — goods
  22. mate — a friend
  23. stock — shares
  24. wound — an injury

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