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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 cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. roll — a cake
  4. land — ground
  5. land — a country
  6. object — a thing
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. can — a tin
  9. can — a tin
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. object — to protest
  15. can — to be able to
  16. tear — to rip
  17. object — an aim
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. land — to come down
  21. roll — a list
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. tear — from crying
  24. date — the fruit

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