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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. clip — to cut
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. tear — to rip
  5. tear — from crying
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. chip — for betting
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. clip — for paper
  11. march — the month
  12. rush — hurry
  13. tear — from crying
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. clip — a video
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. chip — to eat
  24. march — music

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