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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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468
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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. fine — all right
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. march — music
  5. kid — child
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. key — for a lock
  8. tear — to rip
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kick — in football
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. march — the month
  13. toast — bread
  14. kid — to tease
  15. tear — from crying
  16. march — the month
  17. key — in music
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. clip — a video
  21. clip — for paper
  22. clip — to cut
  23. fine — high quality
  24. key — the most important part

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