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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. march — the month
  3. bound — certain
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. foot — a measure
  6. tear — from crying
  7. fine — high quality
  8. spell — letters
  9. march — the month
  10. fine — all right
  11. bound — tied together
  12. tear — from crying
  13. cue — a signal
  14. bound — obliged
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. tear — to rip
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. march — music
  20. cue — for pool
  21. spell — magic
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. spell — a short time

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