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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. march — the month
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — from crying
  5. craft — a skill
  6. mate — a partner
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. march — the month
  9. bark — to shout
  10. mate — a friend
  11. march — music
  12. spring — of water
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. craft — boats
  15. spring — a coil
  16. tear — to rip
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. deal — to handle
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. stand — to bear
  22. spring — the season
  23. mate — to breed
  24. stand — for spectators

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