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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 was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. mug — a cup
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. march — the month
  7. mug — to rob
  8. fine — all right
  9. march — the month
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. tear — from crying
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. lie — to recline
  16. fine — high quality
  17. wound — an injury
  18. ball — a dance
  19. march — music
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — to rip
  22. mug — a face
  23. lie — an untruth
  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